The Fall of the Dark Lord
by AnotherChance
Summary: Takes place in HBP, sequel to She Walked Upon A Cloud. Sarah's back and the gods have another mission for her help Harry beat Voldemort. But no mission would be complete without Death Eater attacks and some truly horrible attempts at staying undercover.RR
1. Prologue

OKAY! TAKE TWO!! Because the computer doesn't seem to like uploading with page breaks, I have just inserted several enters instead. Hope this reads easier.

A/n. Just out of curiosity, one standard size novel page is actually 1/3 of a page of typing on MS Word, on size 12… I was just curious, so I typed out a page of Wild Magic… lol.

For those who haven't read She Walked Upon A Cloud, I suggest you do, although it isn't strictly necessary. This first chapter is based in Tortall; if you choose not to read it then that will be fine too, but again, suggested.

This is a Harry Potter story. I'll spare you to details of She Walked Upon A Cloud, because I'll be explaining (kind of) it in the second or third chapter.

Also, when I started writing this story I kind of forgot a lot of the fifth year… ie Fudge resigning at the end. So I completely disregarded that, and he's still the minister for magic in this story. There may be a couple of other things, but the reason I put the story in the place of HP:HBP, is because I really didn't like the ending of that. For those that have read it, you ought to know what I mean by 'the ending.' For those that haven't (SHAME ON YOU) then this won't spoil that. Everyone's happy!

Enjoy!

**Prologue- The Beginning… Again**

Sarah walked briskly through the front door, not bothering to look at her mother as she whisked through the living room. "Don't worry," She started without preamble, "I'm just here to pick up my wallet. I'll be out of here in under two minutes."

She dug around in her hand bag that hung almost permanently off of her bed post until she found what she was looking for. Slipping it into the right pocket of her breeches, she dodged past her mother, who had followed her into the room. "Sarah…"

The younger woman turned around, fire blazing in her eyes. "What?" The other woman looked suspiciously apologetic. "If you wanted to apologize, maybe you should have came to see me at the hospital, when I wasn't fit enough to walk away from you."

The older woman narrowed her eyes. "How would you know if I did? You were asleep most of the time."

Sarah rolled her eyes. "Before I woke up the first time no one was allowed to visit me; the cops didn't know who actually knew me and who was the press trying to get close. And after I woke up for the first time… well let's just say that months of being thrown out of bed by a cranky Shang in the early hours of the morning has taught me to wake up when someone else enters the room. And you aren't nearly as quiet as Wildcat."

She turned without waiting for a response, digging into her wallet to check for her ATM card and the cash she knew was there. Nodding in satisfaction, she stalked out through the open door, ignoring her mother standing in the living room, staring after her.

PAGE BREAK!!!

Sarah checked to make sure that her new backpack with its contents securely in its belly sat soundly on her shoulders. She surveyed the beach in front of her, deserted by the public who considered it too dangerous after what had nearly happened. Her cool, green eyes watched as the blue grey water lapped at the shore gently, nothing to betray the ocean's dangerous nature. She sighed and fingered the pendant that Mithros had given her. Calling upon a fleck of crimson energy, she turned the inner circle, feeling the pull of magic as it took her from her home dimension and back to the place she felt so much more comfortable.

When the scenery cleared and stopped spinning, she noticed Wildcat and a class of pages staring at her. She gave a little wave to them as the Shang quickly wrapped up the session, giving them the last half an hour off. Wildcat walked towards her, shocked by her appearance little over a week since she had left, and voiced her surprise. The Shang's face closed over, and she asked warily, "What's wrong?"

Sarah shook her head. "I don't want to talk about it, Wildcat."

Wildcat took the hint and changed the subject. Pointing at her backpack, she frowned. "That has to be the weirdest pack I have ever seen, and what are you wearing?"

Sarah looked back at the pack, which happened to have a World Industries logo on it, and a rather violent one at that. The yellow paint splotch was driving a buzz saw through the blue paint splotch's head. Sarah shrugged. "A backpack. After training here I realised how truly impractical over the shoulder satchels were." Looking down at her jeans, sneakers and patterned tunic top, she shrugged. "As for the clothes… well this is the latest fashion back home. And my breeches were getting a little nasty, they need a wash. I had enough money in my savings account… and I really don't think I'll be there long enough next time to need much money."

Wildcat looked on in interest. "Do you have a lot of money back there?"

Sarah grinned wickedly. "I had enough this morning to buy a little present for everyone. Won't last long, the way it tastes, but I figured you might appreciate it."

The Shang's interest was piqued, and she asked, "What is it?"

Sarah shook her head and looked towards the palace, an uncertain look passing over her face. "Is King Jonathon in? I need to discuss something with him." The Shang nodded and led her towards the palace, and through the twisting turns towards the King's quarters.

About half way there they ran into Daine, who looked delighted, if confused. "Sarah, what are you doing here? Not that we don't want you here…" She trailed off as Sarah shook her head. 'Not now.' She mouthed to the Wildmage, a sombre look on her face as she passed by, leaving Daine standing there in the hallway.

Knocking on the chamber doors, they heard Jon call 'Come' and entered. Wildcat left her alone as she stood before his desk. The King stood, a smile gracing his handsome face. "Sarah! What brings you here, you left little over a week ago!"

Sarah coughed lightly into her hand. _Why do they all have to bring that up?_ "I'd rather not talk about it, Majesty."

His smile turned into a mock scowl as his blue eyes sparkled. "Haven't I told you not to be so formal? It's Jon, unless we're in public. What can I do for you?"

She opened and closed her mouth a few times before starting. "When I came out of the Chamber… did that make me a real knight, or because I didn't complete the full training course am I just an anomaly?"

He almost chuckled, but held off when he saw her face. "My dear, you've already been added to the manuscripts."

Sarah nodded, relieved. "Alright, good."

He eyed her warily. "Sarah, look at me. What's wrong, really?"

She met his eyes firmly. "I really don't want to talk about it. Why don't we just drop it?"

He opened his mouth to argue, but thought better of it. There was no way he could make her talk. He changed the subject. "You know, there's never actually been a knight on the manuscripts without a fief next to their name." She frowned, confused at the sudden twist in the conversation. He continued. "I'm quite glad you came back; you know the crown rewards knights that do a great deed for the land, correct?" Without waiting for a response, he took a purse out of a draw in his desk and threw it lightly towards her.

When it landed in Sarah's lap it bulged so much that the top opened, spilling several gold coins onto her jeans and showing many, _many_ more where that came from. Doing a quick count Sarah's eyes boggled. "Jon, this is too much. _Way _too much. I can't accept it." She tried to give it back, but he wouldn't take it from her outstretched hands.

As she tried once again, she was interrupted by Thayet walking into the room, talking to Jon without looking around. "Darling, weren't you going to join the pages for the first lun-" She cut off as she noticed Sarah there, hands outstretched with the purse thrust towards Jonathon. "Sarah?" The queen threw herself at the girl, hugging her tightly in a greeting. Seeing the problem Sarah was having, she turned to Jonathon, "Well, where's that other thing?"

He looked at his wife, rolling his eyes. "I haven't gotten to that yet."

Sarah looked at them, suspicious. "What 'other thing'?"

Jonathon pulled out a scroll of parchment, sealed with wax in the design of the royal coat of arms. Cautiously Sarah broke the seal and saw it was the deed to a fief, called Greenstone. While she stared, the King explained. "It's a reasonably sized fief just south of Corus, about half a day's ride. It has deposits of malachite; that's where it gets its name from, but none of the families that have lived there before have bothered to mine it. Right now it's managed by a crown appointed clerk, but in case you're thinking of refusing, crown appointed clerks generally don't manage fiefs very well if they don't see the profit. The best thing for the people of the village there, which is also a reasonable size, is for you to take the fief and care for it yourself, or hire a better clerk."

Sarah glared at the monarchs, but the expression softened as she stood and bowed. "Thankyou, Jon, Thayet."

Thayet returned the softened glare with a grin. "No problem. Um, Sarah, does anyone else know you're here? I was just with Alanna and she didn't let on…"

Sarah shook her head. "I just showed up in the training field, and asked Wildcat whether you were here. When she said you were we came straight here. Daine saw us in the hallway."

Jon interrupted whatever Thayet was about to say next. "Why did you want to see me, if you don't mind me asking?"

She met his eyes. "I want you to put me to work. Wherever you can."

Thayet almost asked what was going on; Jon shook his head slightly, leaving her frowning instead. Sarah took this opportunity to change the subject. "I brought presents."

Thayet was about to ask what she was talking about when there was a loud knock on the door. Without waiting for an answer, Alanna stomped through the open door, on the brink of one of her famous Lioness rampages. "You come back and you don't even stop by to say hello? I had to find out from Daine! How long have you been back, anyway?"

Sarah looked down at her hands as they trembled in her lap. She took a deep breath to get a hold of her emotions, and answered quietly, "I've been back for about an hour. It was really important that I saw Jon first, before I went to see anyone else."

If Alanna noticed her trembling hands, she was tactful enough to keep it to herself. Thayet diverted attention from Sarah's obvious discomfort by asking, "What presents?"

Sarah grinned. "Chocolate."

Alanna was confused. "But we have chocolate here…"

Sarah shook her head. "Not like this you don't. You couldn't think of the amounts of different kinds we have. I know, so no one _else_ gets annoyed at me for not visiting them, let's have a little get together, in my rooms! Assuming… I still have them?" She was answered by Alanna, with a laugh and a little shove towards the door.

PAGE BREAK!!!

Sarah's little shindig went well. Alanna, Daine, Numair, Raoul, Buri, Thayet, Jon, George, Wildcat and Myles all turned up, glad to see Sarah back. Neal and Kel were stuck at New Hope, where there had been reports of Scanran activity barely three days ago. All of the chocolate was a hit; Thayet was especially partial to the Violet Crumbles; claiming the entire bag as her own.

Sarah awoke the next morning after the first actual decent night's sleep in over a week, feeling refreshed, if still depressed. She made her way to the stables to visit and groom Topaz, apologizing profusely to the horse for not visiting sooner. Occasionally it still felt weird to speak to the horse as though it understood, but Sarah got over the weirdness quickly, murmuring words of praise to the muscular mare. When Topaz lipped her shirt, obviously forgiving her for not visiting sooner, she broke down. The mare's forgiveness was too much for her to handle, and she sobbed quietly into her mane. After a few moments she sensed someone standing behind her.

Without turning around she knew it was Daine. The way Topaz's ears perked up when she saw the newcomer was clue enough. Sarah shuddered a breath before saying quietly, "There's something wrong when my horse can accept me, but my own mother can't."

She sensed swift movement behind her and the Wildmage was laying a hand on her shoulder, turning her around. "Sarah," She began, eyes serious, "What happened?"

Sarah looked at her feet as she answered quietly. "My mother kicked me out. The Gift is considered… evil, when you look at it from a Christian point of view. And she is _very_ Christian."

The Wildmage pursed her lips, shock evident on her face, as well as anger and, Sarah was humiliated to notice, pity. Daine gave her a quick hug and led her to the kitchens to beg some lemonade off of the maids. Sarah remained silent for the entire time, thinking, _if anyone understands, it's Daine. She was chased out of her home too._ Before she knew it, Sarah was being led to a small set of gardens, and Daine sat her down on a stone bench before sitting next to her.

They sat in silence for a few minutes, until Daine ventured quietly, "Thankyou for trusting me enough to tell me. I'll tell you this now; you have and will always have a home here, among us. It'll get easier, I promise."

Sarah nodded mutely, staring at the grass as it glistened in the dying sunlight. After a while she wiped her eyes once more and stood, sighing gustily as she gave her friend a wobbly smile. "I'm going to head inside."

Daine nodded, and replied, "I should probably get back to my rooms too; one of the palace cats had a complication during childbirth; I should make sure it's alright." They walked back inside together, heading in different directions.

PAGE BREAK!!!

Sarah stared out her window at the sun as it slowly set over the palace grounds, casting a beautiful array of reds, oranges and yellows among the scattered trees and training yards. A shuffle disrupted her reverie, and she looked to the door to see Riley standing there, watching his feet as they shuffled side to side. She mustered a grin. "Riley, come in! What brings you here?"

His response was mouse quiet. "I heard you were back… I wanted to see you, to say hello."

Sarah's grin faded as she noticed a shadow around his left eye. "Riley, look at me." When she saw how truly swollen the eye was, she swore. "So, has Brad been helping you fall down still? I swear I'm going to throttle the little twerp."

He met her gaze bravely for a moment, before looking away again. "I'm sure I don't know what you're talking about. Brad didn't help me fall down…"

She rolled her eyes. "Ahuh. Meet me here at sunrise tomorrow morning. You're going to learn how to defend yourself _properly_. None of this rubbish about the Shang arts being savage; they're the most effective way to pound the snot out of that little punk"

His eyes widened, and he looked like he was about to refuse. She beat him to the punch. "Don't make me order you; I'm a full knight now. You have to do what I say."

When he opened his mouth to argue, she held up a hand. "Ah! No. No arguments. I'm older, I'm higher in the food chain, now do as I say. See you at dawn. And I don't mean you get up at dawn. I mean you get up before dawn and get here _by_ dawn. I'll be meeting Wildcat in the morning at the training fields; you'll be joining me. Now scat, I'm busy thinking."

As he walked out the door Alanna walked in. "You're popular today. Who gave the kid the shiner?"

Sarah scowled. "A little punk page in his year. The kid's joining me at dawn tomorrow for training."

Alanna winced. "Tomorrow? Can't you torture him when you get back?"

Sarah immediately turned suspicious. "Get back from where?"

Alanna grinned. "Get back from Fief Greenstone, for your first official inspection. Daine, Numair and I will accompany you."

Sarah scowled. "Already it's starting. The extra responsibilities, the duty to my people… if they bow to me heads will roll. I am not comfortable with people scraping their foreheads against the ground just because I happen to be walking past. It's not right."

Alanna laughed. "So you'll come then?"

Sarah sighed. "I suppose I'll have to. But we'll leave an hour after dawn. I'll get up early and saddle Topaz, and we'll do our training session and just leave. Riley doesn't get out of it that easy."

PAGE BREAK!!!

True to her word, Sarah accompanied Alanna, Daine and Numair on a half day ride to Fief Greenstone. As they made their way through the grassy meadows and hilly country side, Sarah groaned. "How much longer? I so don't want to be here. I just know there's going to be bowing and scraping and I won't be comfortable. Why did Jon force this on me?"

Alanna rolled her eyes. "Your innate sense of decency made you take the fief, not Jon. He just manipulated you into taking it." Sarah glared, even as Alanna continued. "And we're already on your fief. Didn't you read the deed? It's seventy hectares, most of it meadows and grass lands, interrupted by a few veins of malachite."

Sarah continued to grumble. "Yeah, but how big can seventy hectares be? Honestly…"

The others laughed, shaking their heads. "Have patience Sarah, we'll be there soon." Alanna advised.

PAGE BREAK!!!

They trotted through a village that resembled the outskirts of Corus somewhat. Sarah looked around warily, as though waiting for the first person to bow or curtsey so she could glare at them. A young voice sounded. "Mama! Mama, look! It's the Lioness!" Sarah's head whipped around to see a young girl; no older than five, standing and pointing shamelessly. For a brief moment she hoped that all the villagers would be so brash as this child.

That hope was shattered when a lady who was obviously the young girl's mother yanked the girl roughly into a deep curtsey, and Sarah's sharp hearing picked up a scolding. "What, are you addle brained from the heat? Don't you remember his lordship saying an important lady was comin', 'cause the crown gave her this fief for doin' something grand. Now curtsey deeper, th' lady's watching!"

Sarah growled under her breath as she dismounted. Slapping a carefree grin on her face, she stepped towards the duo, who had been joined in their curtsey by everyone in sight. _I have to defuse this situation quick, don't want to teach them bad habits…_she bent over in front of the girl, who was grinning shyly at her, suddenly lost for words.

"Hello, and what's your name?"

"Tiffany, my lady." The young girl squeaked.

Sarah met her eyes. "I'm not your lady, Tiffany. My name is Sarah. That's what I want you to call me. Can you do that?"

The girl looked confused. "B-but, my la- I mean, um… aren't we supposed to call nobles by their titles? Aren't you a lady?"

Sarah grinned ruefully. "Not by choice." She shook her head at the way that sounded. "And I'm serious, call me Sarah. You should call other nobles by their titles, unless they ask you not to. Which I am doing right now. So, Tiffany, will you introduce me to your mother?"

The young girl nodded enthusiastically, her shyness evaporating when she noticed Sarah didn't bite. "Mama, this is Sarah. Sarah, this is my mama, Abigail."

The older woman's curtsey never failed. "My lady, please excuse my daughter, she is young. I-" Sarah interrupted her by gently lifting under the lady's arms to lever her into a standing position.

"Abigail, was it? Same goes to you." She raised her voice to be heard by all the villagers present. "Same goes to all of you. Don't call me 'my lady'. It makes me feel old. It's Sarah, or if you can't remember that, miss. If I catch any of you calling me 'my lady' I'll… I don't know. Find some chamberpots for you to clean or something. Understood?"

A chorus of confused affirmatives met her question, and she smiled in satisfaction. "Good." She mounted Topaz and nudged her in the direction of the tower which loomed over the village, nodding to the men at arms who opened the gate for them, and ignoring Alanna, Daine and Numair's snickers as she kept her eyes forward, ignoring the villagers who stared at her.

PAGE BREAK!!!

Sarah rested under a tree, having already looked over her accounts under the guidance of the current clerk who, dry as he was, seemed overly enthusiastic to be rid of the trouble of managing someone else's fief.

The fief was more or less a patch of dirt, with no exports, farming, breeding or mining to keep it going. When Sarah asked how the village was being sustained, the clerk couldn't answer, and didn't seem too concerned.

Sarah sighed, closing her eyes. If these people were going to prosper, she was going to have to do a major overhaul of the books, and hirer a proper clerk, someone she could trust to manage it properly when she was gone.

A loud crack heralded the arrival of Mithros. She cracked her eyes open, annoyed that he had come to ruin the relaxing afternoon of nothing that she had planned. "What do you want?" She asked crossly.

When he answered, his tone was mocking. "What, you thought that the messenger of the gods job was over when she defeated the Sorrows? Not nearly, my dear."

Sarah narrowed her eyes. "What is it this time and why should I do it?"

He splayed his fingers and advanced towards her. She threw up her hands quickly. "Really, no need to be rash. Let me guess, a lot of people die. What is the mission? I want an explanation this time. And in case you haven't noticed, I have a lot of commitments here now. You're standing on my new fief, just so you know."

He narrowed his eyes. "I shall speak with the clerk. He will remain here for the duration of your mission. The Wildmage and the Black robe will remain in this dimension, and inform your king. The Lioness will go with you. You will be required to help a wizard stop another from destroying their world. The way you do that is entirely up to you."

Sarah opened her mouth to argue against Alanna being pulled into this mess, but Mithros had already swept her off of her feet, a swirling sensation pulling at her body as she landed in a heap on wet grass. The first thing she noticed was Alanna, moaning and retching on the ground next to her.

"Goddess, it's just like travelling on a boat." She heard from her mentor before chuckling slightly and moving over slowly to comfort the red headed knight.

When Alanna had recovered they looked around, and what they saw shocked them. Standing before them was a castle that rivalled the palace in Corus, and strolling out to meet them was an old man with a long white beard, twinkling eyes and a small grin on his face.

TBC…


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1:

Sarah scowled. Why had Mithros involved Alanna in this? Surely Sarah should be able to handle the situation without the involvement of the King's Champion, the first female knight in over a century, and more importantly a woman with a loving family.

She turned quickly to the red head and talked fast. "Mithros said that there was another mission for me. When he said you were to come too, I was about to argue but he pulled us both here too soon. Daine and Numair apparently know, and will be telling Jon soon, I hope. Apparently I'm helping a wizard- that's like a mage I think- to stop another wizard from destroying this world."

Alanna's eyes went wide. "So I'm supposed to help too… Goddess help me, how long is this man's beard."

The man had almost reached them. He spoke. "Hello, Sarah is it? I was informed by a… mutual friend, that you were here, and that you would help us with a little problem we've been having."

Sarah took the offered hand, and shook it warmly. "Please, I doubt he wants mortals calling him 'friend'. Yes, my name's Sarah. This is Sir Alanna of Trebond; Mithros has kindly offered her services as well. Tell me, what do you know of us?"

The older man nodded and gestured to the path towards the castle. "Please, where are my manners. My name is Albus Dumbledore; I am the headmaster of this school."

"School?!" Sarah interrupted him, casting a glance at the large castle they walked towards.

He looked mildly amused. "Yes, school. Did Mithros not tell you that's where you would be staying?"

Sarah scoffed. "Mithros didn't tell me much of _anything._ Please, go on."

He nodded and continued. "This is Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. As for what I know of you… not a great deal. I know you are a knight were you come from, proficient with wandless magic, and proficient with something akin to the muggle forms of martial arts. And for your friend, I know nothing of."

Sarah nodded. "That's about how much I know of this mission. I'm supposed to help someone here defeat another wizard, who threatens the existence of this world."

Dumbledore watched her closely. "You mean Harry. I think it is best that we discuss this further in my office, shall we?"

He led them through the entrance to the castle, and through winding, twisting halls and stairs. They passed potraits that moved, and were greeted in the halls by a ghost, who Dumbledore greeted as Sir Nicholas. Sarah tried not to stare, and finally they reached a gargoyle, which moved aside to reveal a moving staircase when Dumbledore said "Liquorice Twists."

He gestured them into seats, and Alanna sat heavily. She had yet to recover from the shock of the situation. Sarah, who was faring a little better, laid a hand on her shoulder before sitting next to her.

The older man regarded them carefully, before asking, "Tea? Sherbet drop?"

Sarah and Alanna shook their heads at both. He nodded and folded his hands in front of himself. "Well, it seems we are in debt for your assistance. I think it would be best, however, if you are inconspicuous in your presence. It wouldn't do for Voldemort to become aware of your presence before time. This could prove difficult, as neither of you have experience in this world…"

Sarah shrugged. "Also, our accents… how about I pretend to be an exchange student from a magic school in a different country… oh shoot, that won't work. I'll still be expected to know things. Um…"

Dumbledore smiled. "You have two months to learn the rudiments before school restarts. We should be able to train you to the level of a plausible sixth year. Most of them forget the earlier years work anyway; any new material will be revised regardless. And that is Harry Potter's grade this year. It would be best if you were as close as possible to him, in case a crisis arises."

Sarah nodded. "Alright then, if you think you can teach me fast enough… what about Alanna?"

He looked the red head over, who looked like she had recovered enough to start a famous Lioness argument if provoked. "Perhaps a teacher of defence without a wand? A completely voluntary subject held after dinner?"

Alanna looked about ready to argue, but Sarah laid a hand on her arm, catching her attention. "You know what I learnt in Tortall, when Mithros dragged me there against my will? Go with the flow. If Dumbledore thinks that would be a good idea, then you probably should do it. The gods want you here for this mission. You need to get used to it."

The knight looked almost frightened. "But what about…" she trailed off.

Sarah knew where her mentor was headed. "I know. Your family, our friends… we'll see them again. I promise." Alanna nodded, the hard look of a seasoned veteran returning to her eyes. She nodded to Dumbledore.

"It is settled then. We should begin your training, Sarah, as soon as possible."

Sarah nodded, and they left to meet the other teachers.

PAGE BREAK!!!

Sarah shook hands with the tiny little man, diplomatically saying, "It is a pleasure to meet you, Professor Flitwick. I'm sure I'll enjoy studying Charms." Meanwhile she was thinking, _He only comes up to my waist…At least Alanna isn't the shortest person here._ Glancing at her mentor she realised the red head was probably thinking the same thing, from the way she stared curiously at the small man.

Sarah shook her head slightly, and turned to the next professor in the line. A hard looking older woman met her gaze with green eyes, and a withered face. Dumbledore's voice sounded behind her. "Sarah, this is Professor McGonagall, she is my deputy headmistress, and the teacher of transfigurations. Minerva, this is Sarah. She has been sent by our sunny friend…" He trailed off as the deputy headmistress nodded in awareness.

"So this is her." Sarah frowned at being examined in such a manner, and thrust her hand towards the woman, pasting a grin on her face.

"Hi. I'm sorry to say this, but every transfiguration spell I've tried has failed miserably. Just ask Alanna, it's a major weak spot." This caused Sarah's intended reaction, confusion.

Before anyone could ask what she meant, Snape drawled, "I'm sure you have a multitude of weak spots. I'd even wager you'll find potions is one of them. Headmaster, if you'll excuse me, I was brewing an important potion before I was interrupted." His voice dripped ice, and Alanna started forward at the insult to her student.

Sarah held her back with a reproachful hand. She eyed the oily professor with interest, her head cocked as though she was examining a specimen in a glass cage. "Why the sharp words, professor? Is it that wandless magic-" She summoned red fire into her hand, almost lazily as she continued. "Is so different to your own, that it makes you nervous?"

He sneered at her. "Your display hardly makes me nervous. I have more important things than meet a girl child with delusions of grandeur."

She stuck her hands in her pockets, the grin never leaving her face as she stared him down. When he fidgeted, she added almost amicably, "By the way, learning potions was a rather strong point for me. I'm _sure_ I'll enjoy your class."

She turned to the next professor in line, continuing the introductions, as Snape flushed angrily at being mocked by someone so young, and stalked from the room.

PAGE BREAK!!!

Sarah looked around Diagon Alley in awe. Not even the markets in Corus could rival the oddities she found here. Dumbledore waited patiently while Sarah, and Alanna next to her, stared at people in robes with owls, cats and toads in cages. There were people waving sticks and items levitating in front of them, and little men with hooked noses and pointy ears, which Dumbledore called goblins.

Alanna was the first to shake herself out of her awe. She shook her head in disgust. "Look at me, a seasoned knight and mage, and I'm staring like a page new to court." Slapping Sarah lightly over the back of the head, she added, "Snap out of it."

Sarah grinned sheepishly. "It's so different to Corus. I thought Tortall was a hard adjustment. This is just… weird."

Dumbledore chuckled, and gestured to a small store with the name of Ollivanders. "If you would oblige me, our mutual friend instructed that you would require a wand."

Sarah knew that the mutual friend was Mithros, but she understood Dumbledore's secrecy. If there was someone watching, she was just a new student gathering her things.

She walked through the door, sneezing at the dust in the store. She saw an old man standing behind the counter, and narrowed her eyes. The man stared at her with wide eyes. "Oh, how long I have been waiting to serve one of your kind, young miss."

Sarah looked confused. "One of my kind?"

The man nodded eagerly. "One of the chosen. I-"

Dumbledore cut him off. "Perhaps it would be best not to speak of what the young miss is and isn't. Voldemort has spies everywhere, if you'll remember."

The wand maker looked properly chastised, and nodded. He turned around, muttering to himself, before pulling out a long box. "Eleven inches, willow with a unicorn hair core." Sarah stared at it dumbly. Impatiently, he gestured with his own wand while saying, "Well, give it a whirl!"

She looked to Alanna, who shrugged. Sarah gave it a little twirl in the air, and the contents of the desk went flying. Before she could say anything the wand was snatched from her hands and he was back looking through the piles of wands, muttering to himself some more.

"I guess that wasn't right." She muttered dryly to Alanna. Alanna snickered and gestured. Mr Ollivander was holding out another wand for her to try. She seized the wand in her right hand and gave it a swirl around. This time there was no effect whatsoever.

The wand was snatched off of her again, and she could hear him muttering. "I should have known twelve inch oak wouldn't work… hmm…" He pulled out another long box, and opened the lid carefully. "Pine, ten inches, feather of a hippogriff and the blood of a thestral for the core. Made especially for the last of your kind to grace this realm; unfortunately they didn't survive long enough to use it."

Sarah shared a quick, alarmed glance with Alanna. _Last of _my _kind?_ She thought. Surely he couldn't mean the gods had had more messengers. Sarah shook her head as she reached for the wand. Her fingers stopped, outstretched, an inch above the wood. She looked at the wand maker. "This is much more powerful than the last two." He nodded.

Sarah shrugged and took the wand out, giving it a swish. A soft wind seemed to pick up around Sarah, and it grew stronger until her hair whipped around her face. Light emitted from the tip of the wand; Sarah thought she saw sparks. The demonstration went on for a few more moments, in which both Sarah and Alanna were getting antsy.

Finally the wind stopped and the sparks died down. Sarah looked at Ollivander questioningly. "Is that a yes, or a no?"

He beamed at her. "Most definitely a yes, my dear. Use it in good health!" Sarah and Alanna left the store while Dumbledore arranged payment. When he joined them on the street, he started walking towards a store labelled Flourish and Blotts.

When they entered and saw it was a book store, Sarah muttered to Alanna. "We are _not_ bringing Numair here. We'd never get him to leave!" Alanna snickered.

When Sarah turned around a large handful of books were placed into her arms; she could barely see above them. "These are the books you'll need for sixth year; the teachers will tutor you from their copies of the books for the years before." Sarah nodded. "Shall we get your dress robes then? And you, Alanna, would do well to wear them also, lest you be considered 'weird'."

Alanna snickered again at Sarah's expression. She _hated_ dress fittings, and didn't believe robes would be any better.

PAGE BREAK!!!

Dumbledore levitated Sarah's new possessions between them. There was a large pile of books, a cauldron, some herbs and other potions ingredients that she couldn't name- yet- a pile of robes almost as large as the pile of books, some quills and a lot of parchment.

PAGE BREAK!!!

Sarah could see Alanna's smirk and glared. She was stuck at the back of a long line of ten year olds, waiting to be 'sorted'. Dumbledore had wanted it to seem as realistic as possible, that she was an exchange student, and had even forced her to take the train back to Hogwarts.

_That was a long train ride._ Sarah thought to herself. That blond haired viper trying to start a conversation with her… She thought back to the train carriage.

"Are you new to Hogwarts?" The blond haired boy enquired.

_He uses entirely too much hair gel…_ Sarah thought. "Do you recognize me?" She returned, sarcastic.

He blinked. "Well no… you're a little old to be a first year…" He frowned. He seemed to think something over, and advanced with his hand outstretched. "Draco Malfoy." He gestured to the two large boys that stood behind him. "This is Crabbe, and this is Goyle."

Sarah rolled her eyes, bored. "Ahuh. Well just letting you know, I'm an exchange student. Now run along and tell everyone else on the train of the weird person in carriage four, so they can all gawk at me too. Do you mind?"

She was in a bad mood. She knew she was being rude, but didn't really care. This Malfoy slime ball was already rubbing her the wrong way. He narrowed his eyes at her. "You really don't want me as an enemy." His voice was soft with warning.

She looked him up and down. "Are you threatening me?" She laughed uproariously, the situation too funny to sit quietly. "You're kidding! Get out of here before I hex you into oblivion, you twit."

She could do it, she had mused later in the trip. Her tutoring with the teachers of the school had gone well… except for transfigurations. Flitwick had taught her all of the charms he taught first years on the first lesson; she normally managed to complete them successfully within three attempts, and once she did it stuck. All she had to do was remember all of the new words she was learning…

Snape had grudgingly moved her onto third level potions when he saw she had a steady hand with the cauldron and could cut herbs and other materials up with ease and accuracy. Hagrid had taken a liking to her, and often they, and Alanna, had shared stories over a cup of tea in his hut, about the immortals in Tortall, and Daine and her ability to talk to animals and immortals alike.

McGonagall had been stern with her at first, forcing her to sit down and be quiet. But when it came to the point that she noticed that, contrary to popular belief, Sarah, like most students, could talk and work at the same time, she loosened up.

Trelawny made her uneasy. She hadn't met her on her first day, and she was beginning to wish she had never met her at all. Everytime she entered the Divination Tower, there was a prediction of death, pain and suffering waiting for her. Nevertheless, divination was useful, so Sarah forced herself to learn it, in case it proved useful for the defence of Tortall.

And now she was stuck in the back of a line with ten year olds who shuffled nervously forward as their names were called out. She heard some laughter to her left, and turned to see Malfoy and his cronies staring at her, mirth on their faces. The people around them turned and giggled as well.

Sarah gritted her teeth and held herself tall. She was a warrior of Tortall; a knight, mage and Shang-in-training. Those whelps at the Slytherin table wouldn't stand a chance against her if they had the guts to challenge her, and she would have to be content with that. Looking up at Alanna, she noticed her teacher's red face and angry expression. _She looks like she's ready to rip 'em a new one…_ Sarah caught her eye and shook her head.

Instead of doing something rash, which would blow their cover, Alanna took a long drink of her pumpkin juice. The last of the first years were sorted, this one into Ravenclaw, and Dumbledore stood. "This year we have a new sixth year joining us." Sarah felt all eyes turn to her. "Sarah Gibson has transferred from the Ministry College, in Australia, and I want you to all make her feel welcome and at home." He nodded to McGonagall.

The weathered transfigurations professor gestured her to a stool, where Sarah sat. The old hat was placed on her head, and Sarah was startled to hear it talking to her. _Hmm…you're an unusual one. Plenty of bravery, that's for sure, but there's intelligence, intense loyalty, and cunning. A lot of darkness in you, for one so young…_

Sarah thought back at the hat. _I'm not so young. I hope you aren't saying this aloud, I have a secret mission here, we don't want anyone to get suspicious._

_Don't worry, this is between me and you, young one… let's see, you would be wasted in Hufflepuff. Ravenclaw would bore you; you prize adventure over learning… Slytherin or Gryffindor then. Your quarry is in Gryffindor… you're supposed to get his trust, aren't you?_

_Yes._ Sarah replied, uneasy at the sensation of someone in her mind.

_Then Gryffindor it shall be. GRYFFINDOR!_

Sarah threw the hat off of her head, even as she stood hastily, realising the hat had said the last part out loud. She saw Dumbledore smiling slightly, his fingers templed. McGonagall gestured to the long table filled with applauding students, all of them wearing red ties. Sarah walked over to the table, content on sitting at the end, but was gestured to the centre by a red head, who sat next to a girl with bushy hair. She took the offered seat next to a boy with black hair, and sighed.

The boy who gestured her over held out his hand. "I'm Ron Weasley. This is Hermione Granger-" He gestured to the girl with bushy hair. "And that is Harry Potter." She shook the offered hands one at a time, but didn't react to Harry's name. Sure, she had heard of him. This was the boy she was here to help. Didn't mean she was going to go nuts and start gushing over him, though.

Noticing the weird looks she was given, she put on her best innocent face, and asked, "What?"

Ron pointed at Harry. "You didn't react to his name. Haven't you heard of him?"

Sarah nodded. "Sorry. Do you want me to gush and ask for your autograph? I will, but I'll feel like an utter fool doing it."

Harry grinned, and Ron smiled. Hermione looked suspicious. "Don't you care?"

Sarah was saved answering by Dumbledore, who stood at the head of the dais. "Welcome, welcome, welcome. A new year at Hogwarts… let us all say hello to our new students, and bid them a happy year. Now, a few notices. I won't keep you from your dinner long, I know how hungry you must all be. Firstly, as with every year, the Forbidden Forest is out of bounds. Mr Filch would also like me to let you all know that anyone caught in the corridors past curfew will receive detention. No one is exempt from this rule. And lastly, there will be a new extra curricular activity this year. Professor Trebond?"

Alanna stood, her gaze sweeping over the crowd with an expression Sarah recognized. _Uh oh… she's picking her first victim…_ Dumbledore was speaking again. "This is Professor Alanna Trebond. She will be teaching all those interested how to defend themselves if they find themselves wandless. Sarah, would you stand also?"

Sarah blushed furiously and stared at her plate as her legs obeyed the headmaster. "Sarah here will be assisting Professor Trebond in this endeavour. It is a completely optional class, and will be taken in the afternoons, when the other classes are finished, but I strongly urge all to participate in these dark times. One day it could be the difference between life and death." Sarah felt Harry tense up beside her at the mention of death.

Sarah flicked a glance his way, and sat when Dumbledore gestured for her to sit. Ron looked about to burst from his skin. "You're a teacher!" He looked at Sarah, gobsmacked. "But you're a student, you can't be a teacher."

Hermione took pity on her friend and interrupted his ramblings. "She's like a teacher's assistant. She's still a student. Stop gaping, and eat your vegetables."

Sarah choked back a giggle. Already she thought her time here could be fun and interesting. She'd already learned several useful techniques with the wand, ones that would give her the upper hand in a battle if she needed it.

Hermione was looking at her suspiciously. "So, Sarah, did Dumbledore say you learned your magic in the Ministry College?" When Sarah nodded, she continued. "That's funny, I've never heard of it-" She jerked as she broke off, and Ron glared at her.

_He must've kicked her under the table._ Sarah thought as she answered, "It's only small, and new. I'm not surprised you haven't heard of it."

Hermione didn't seem satisfied with her answer, but let it go. She turned to a brown skinned girl next to her and started a conversation. Harry rolled his eyes. He turned to Sarah and asked again, "So do you like Quidditch?"

Sarah shrugged. "It seems pretty cool, but I haven't seen much of it; it's not a big thing back home. You wouldn't catch me playing it though; I can't ride a broom to save my life." That wasn't strictly true, Madam Hooch had been impressed when she had tutored her during the two months she had been there, but she didn't plan on showing off her skills. It would be too suspicious, Sarah had thought.

"I'm sure you're a great flyer." Ron said eagerly.

She arched an eyebrow. "You aren't going to be given a mark for defence without a wand, so there's no point in sucking up."

His face fell, and Harry laughed. "So why are you helping Professor Whatshername with the new class?"

Sarah rolled her eyes. "I met her before, and you'd do best to remember her name. She was a real grouch when I forgot it the first time. It's Professor Trebond." Again not true; Alanna had been completely understanding when she had forgotten her name. _Getting off to a great start here, Sarah.__ Lying left right and centre. Great way to make friends._

Harry was talking. "You didn't answer my question. Why would you be helping with a new class?"

Sarah shrugged. "Someone told Professor Dumbledore that I was good with self defence, I guess he took it to heart."

Harry nodded, content with her answer, and started a conversation about each of the teachers; who was nice, who wasn't. Not surprisingly the first thing out of his mouth was, "Watch out for Professor Snape. He's a bloody-"

Sarah broke him off. "So how about that weather we've been having lately, eh? So different to home…" Just as Professor Snape walked past, sneering at the people at the Gryffindor table. Sarah let out a breath she didn't realise she had been holding.

Ron cackled. "Bloody hell, mate. That was close; you almost got detention on your first day back!"

Sarah grinned, as Harry drew his hand over his brow, sighing in relief. Hermione took time out of her conversation to scold Harry. "Really, you should show more respect. He's one of your professors…" She broke off, laughing. "Okay, even I can't get through that lecture anymore without laughing."

The four of them got along famously after that, but Sarah knew Hermione was still watching; waiting for her to show her Death Eater colours.

Sarah woke up early the next morning, intent on going on a long run. She slipped into her boots and a fresh pair of muggle pants, which Dumbledore had insisted she wear. Her cover would be blown if she wore her normal breeches. Throwing a singlet on, she tied her hair back with a leather thong and exited the dorms quietly, not wanting to wake Hermione, Parvati or Lavender.

She made her way quickly down to the entrance to the palace, and stretched thoroughly. The sky was just turning pink with dawn when she set off about the grounds. She was used to long hours; she had pulled more than enough during her Shang training. A predawn wake up call was nothing to her.

She set about around the castle to begin with, but broke off when she had reached her starting point. She headed for the Forbidden Forest, veering off to run several metres to the side of the tree line. She waved to Hagrid, who was standing in his pumpkin patch, watching the sunrise. He waved back, his huge hand swinging wildly as he waved as a child might. "Good Morning Sarah!"

She rolled her eyes and veered off to talk to him. "Hagrid, you aren't supposed to know me yet."

He looked embarrassed. "Er… sorry Sarah. I'll pretend to be jus' meetin' ya when I see you in class later." She nodded and started jogging again, passing Professor Sprout's glass houses before turning back and heading for the castle entry.

When she jogged up the steps and into the Gryffindor common room, she noticed Harry, Hermione and Ron sitting there, discussing something quietly. When Sarah entered the room, they looked up and stopped talking. _Uh oh…Dumbledore told me about their ability to ferret out trouble. Maybe should have thought of a better cover story._

She plastered a grin on her face. "Hey guys, you're up early."

Ron frowned. "How are we up early if you're up earlier?"

Sarah laughed. "Because I'm a freak of nature that likes punishment. You seemed normal last night… ergo I thought you might sleep in, like normal people."

Hermione asked in a demanding voice, "Where have you been?"

Sarah forced herself to look confused at her hostility, although she knew she was concerned about her friend's safety. "On a run. What better way to see the castle grounds than by jogging around them a couple of times?"

Ron's jaw dropped. "You were on a run. You got up early to _exercise_? You're worse than Hermione! She gets up to do school work, but at least that's compulsory!"

Sarah laughed again. "For me running is compulsory. If I didn't, when I go back home in the holidays my martial arts teacher would run me into the ground, as punishment."

Hermione didn't look satisfied with her answer, and the boys went upstairs to get dressed. The bushy haired girl watched her suspiciously as Sarah walked up to the dorms to shower.

PAGE BREAK!!!

The first lesson of the day, and Sarah was about ready to tell the gods where to shove it. It seemed Snape had woken up on the wrong side of the bed that morning, and had decided to make Sarah pay for his inconvenience.

The potion master swept into the room, his long robes billowing behind him as he turned sharply. "Turn your books to page twelve." He waited as they all complied. "Now, this is a revision of a potion you did last year. The Draught of Peace, which is a potion that calms anxiety and soothes agitation. I expect, since you should all be _proficient_ in producing this draught, that you will be able to finish it before the end of the lesson. Begin!"

Sarah stared at Snape with contempt. _Revision my arse.__ He picked a potion I hadn't done yet deliberately. Arse hole._ Sarah thought of a few more choice words as she drew out the ingredients required for the potion. _I'll show him I wasn't just bragging when I said I was good at potions._

Sarah worked quickly and efficiently, keeping up with Hermione, barely, as she worked steadily towards the Draught of Peace. When the hour they had been assigned was over, her work was emitting a silver steam; Hermione's was too.

Snape passed their table, looking down his hooked nose at their potions. He continued on without saying a word, which Sarah took as a good sign. In the end he had only found a fault with Parvati's potion, which emitted green sparks, rather than a silver mist, and several of the Slytherin's, who shared the class with the Gryffindors.

Sarah sighed as she walked out of the class, glad to be out of the cold, damp dungeons. Hermione, Harry and Ron followed her out. A voice crowed behind them, "Oh, the mudblood's gone and got herself a new friend."

Sarah turned, confused, and whispered to Harry as he held Ron back, "What's a mudblood?"

"Someone with muggles for parents." He muttered, glaring at Malfoy.

Sarah shrugged. "What's so bad about being a mudblood? My parents are muggles."

Malfoy stared at her. "You know, on the train I knew there was something off about you. Now I know, I smelt the poverty on you."

Sarah rolled her eyes, and turned to Harry. "Is he always such a pretentious git?" Harry nodded. Sarah turned back to Malfoy, and laughed. _I still have it. Bullies are so easy to deflate._ Sarah thought as Malfoy became angry.

"What are you laughing at, mudblood?" The blond sneered.

She looked almost rueful as she answered, "A sad little boy. Run along now; go play with daddy's money."

His wand was drawn and pointed at her nose before she could blink. She smiled wickedly. "Oh, you think you're fast? I'll bet I'm faster." Her hand whipped up in a disarming move, one that Wildcat had taught her in the beginning of her training. Her other hand shot to cover his mouth; she didn't want him uttering any spells until his wand was halfway down the hall, preferably snapped.

Her left leg whipped around and swept his from beneath him. He landed hard on his behind, and his wand was thrown well clear. Sarah bent over him, grasping his hand and twisting the arm painfully, promising good behaviour. Her face was held just in front of his nose. "Now, is that any way to treat a new student? Didn't Dumbledore say to make me feel at home? I doubt this is what he meant…"

She trailed off as she noticed Crabbe and Goyle with their wands drawn and pointed at her. "And what makes you two think you'll fair any better than blondie here? Go on, scat!"

Crabbe and Goyle, who had watched the proceedings with wide eyed fear, shared a glance. As one they grabbed one of Malfoy's arms each and dragged him to his feet, scooping up his wand as they fled down the hall way.

Sarah laughed heartily, until a voice sounded behind her. "Fighting in the hall ways, and on your first day at a new school. You should be ashamed Gibson." Sarah turned to see Alanna standing behind her, a stern look on her face. For Sarah, who knew her well, she could see a strong approval there as well.

Sarah bowed her head in false contrition. "I'm sorry professor. All I can ask is that you don't punish my house for my wrong doing."

Sarah met her eyes, almost daring Alanna to take points off of her. The red head seemed to play with the idea for a moment, before folding her arms across her chest. "Alright. As it _is_ the first day, and I overheard that pr- I mean student baiting you, you'll get off on a warning. Next time I catch you fighting though, I'll have to deduct points."

Sarah grinned and nodded. "Thankyou for your understanding, Professor Trebond."

Alanna nodded and walked off. Ron whistled lowly, his anger at Malfoy forgotten. "That was some smooth talking. And did you see her eyes? Purple!"

Sarah grinned. "It's a gift, I know. I'm good with the gab, can talk my way out of anything." She glanced at the timetable she had scrawled on a piece of parchment. She looked up at the other three. "Hey, does anyone else have divination now? How is it?"

Hermione rolled her eyes. "An absolute waste of time. Ron and Harry still take it. They'll show you the way."

Sarah grinned and nodded in the direction of the hall she knew to be wrong. Harry took one arm, Ron took the other, laughing. "Just as well you have us to guide you. Hermione, have fun in runes, see you at lunch." The bushy haired girl bid them farewell.

They climbed up a Divination Tower, and Harry and Ron were panting by the end of the climb. As they entered the room full of incense, Sarah wrinkled her nose in disgust. She knew plenty of seers, okay well not _plenty_, but she knew some seers, and none of them required incense to see the future. Ron and Harry led her to a table near the hatchway. The red head muttered to Sarah, "Trelawny is nuts. She has no idea what goes on in the real world. Expect a prediction of your death."

Sarah groaned as the woman swept into the room. "Hello, my children. Seamus, dear, tell your mother to watch her step this month; she is marked for an accident. Welcome to a new year of divination. I see we have a new student…"

Harry muttered to her, "Here we go…"

Sarah took a sip of tea as Trelawny's gaze as she swept her eyes over her. "My dear, I pity you! Your life is haunted by ruin and death, you are touched by the Light Ones! Oh you poor, poor dear."

Sarah choked on her tea, and Ron thumped her heartily on the back. Looking up at Trelawny from watering eyes, she managed a sarcastic remark, "Uh… thanks for the heads up. Really, I appreciate it. I'll look out for that hope crushing ruin you mentioned, and if I run into anyone dressed light colours, I'll be extra careful not to let them touch me."

Ron hid a snicker behind his hand, and Trelawny moved on with the lesson. Harry frowned. "That was unusual. Normally it's not that specific."

Sarah shrugged. "I guess she got bored with the general warnings, wanted to try something new." Nevertheless, the warning had shaken her.

PAGE BREAK!!!

"I wonder who our new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher is." Harry wondered loudly.

"Some ministry appointed teacher." Hermione responded, having joined them for lunch. "I overheard Professor Flitwick saying how he was scarcely better than Umbridge."

Sarah listened with interest. The Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher hadn't been present during the time before the school term had started; she had learned all she knew so far from Professor Dumbledore. Professor Dumbledore had thought it better that she was a 'normal' student for his class; he didn't know a thing about her mission, apparently. They strolled into the classroom, and Sarah's step hitched as she saw the Professor standing at the front of the room.

"Hey look!" Ron said loudly. "It's Professor Trebond!"

Sarah looked at Alanna with questioning eyes. She didn't have to wait long to find out why her friend was taking the class; Alanna started in without preamble. "I'll bet you're all wondering why I'm here; well your Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher has given me leave to use this class to explain more about Defence Without a Wand. Sarah, would you join me please?"

Sarah stood, even as the Slytherins looked on with contempt. She made her way to the front of the class, throwing another questioning look at Alanna. The red head was continuing. "Sarah will be teaching anyone who participates self defence."

Before she could continue, Malfoy muttered loud enough for everyone to hear, "Great, the Gryffindors have picked up _another_ teachers pet." Sarah glared at him, but Alanna's voice stopped her from marching forward to beat the tar out of him.

"Ten points from Slytherin. There will be no talking out of place when I am talking." Her voice was soft, and Sarah saw the look in her eyes that she got when she was about to sharpen her tongue on someone. She waited until the class had settled down to continue. "Thankyou. The self defence will consist of the muggle martial arts, which I am led to believe Sarah is quite proficient at. The part I will be teaching is magical defence without a wand. Not everyone will be able to do this; it takes an incredible amount of control, and you'll need to think out of the box for all of it. Although it is a voluntary class, Dumbledore suggested and I agreed that it would be best to spend this lesson learning some self defence. Sarah, if you would take the class."

Sarah stared at Alanna with open contempt, thinking furiously at the red head, _You__ could have given me some warning!_ She turned to the students in the class, seeing them all stare at her, some, like the Slytherins, with contempt, and others, like the Gryffindors, with amazement.

"Uh…" She started, unsure. "Let's start by getting rid of all these tables and chairs, we need some room."

When they complied, she scratched the back of her head. "Um… alright, take off your cloaks, you need to be able to move freely." There was a rustle of fabric, even as the Slytherins glared at her. They complied, but only because Alanna glared at them. "Alright, everyone do as I do."

She led them in stretches, and then showed them all how to throw a punch, fixing the occasional student's stance, or showing them how not to telegraph their moves. At the end of the session, after a nudge from Alanna, she had them all standing around the outer edge of the room, while Sarah stood in the centre. "Alright, just so you don't all leave thinking the class will be boring, I'm going to show you a quick pattern dance that you'll learn if you take up the course."

She started out slowly, moving her arm in an open fist punch, and brought her left leg around so she faced the other way, bringing her right elbow back slowly, with as much control as she could manage. Her elbow reached its arc and she held it, breathing out slowly. Now she faced Alanna, and gave a half grin. The red head nodded, and Sarah launched herself into a flurry of movements, kicking out in a roundhouse, followed quickly by a crescent kick, and sweeping the feet out from beneath her imaginary opponent with her left leg.

Her body moved in a blur, and after several moments she ended with a punch that stopped a scant centimetre from Alanna's face. She brought her feet together and bowed deeply to her mentor, and then to the centre of the room. When the students filed out, she waved Harry, Ron and Hermione out, and turned on Alanna. "What the hell was that! I'm your assistant, not the damn teacher!"

Alanna cackled. "S-sorry!" She managed to get out between gasps for air. "I couldn't resist. Besides, you've were training non stop with Wildcat; you're a better combatant than I am unarmed."

Sarah scowled. Neither of them noticed Hermione standing in the hallway, just out of sight, listening carefully to their exchange with wide eyes, nor did they hear her feet padding against the stone floor as she hurried to tell Harry and Ron about what she had heard.

TBC.


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter 2:

Hermione raced down the corridors, heading for the Gryffindor Common Room as fast as her legs would carry her. When she gasped the password out for the Fat Lady, she saw Harry and Ron sitting in the comfortable old arm chairs by the fire. She yanked them to their feet and hissed, "We have to talk."

They took one look at her rumpled appearance and breathless face and followed her out into the hall way. Ron was the first to recover. "Hermione, what is it?"

She held a finger to her lips and looked around. "Not here. Come on!"

The two boys shared a puzzled look and followed her to Moaning Myrtle's bathroom, the place they used when they needed to talk in private. When they had reached the forgotten privy, Hermione turned to her closest friends. "There is something definitely _off_ about Sarah and Professor Trebond."

She relayed what she had heard, and watched their faces. Harry's face fell. "I thought she was a genuinely nice person. Now we know she's hiding something, what should we do?"

"Go to Dumbledore." Was Ron's reply.

Rather than immediately scoff at the idea, Hermione seemed thoughtful. "I think we should. He'll want to know about it."

Harry took a little convincing, but eventually he agreed. They made their way to the headmaster's office. Harry walked right up to the gargoyle, and pronounced clearly, "Sherbet Lemons."

The gargoyle slid to one side, and Harry, Hermione and Ron stepped grimly onto the moving platform.

PAGE BREAK!!!

Sarah settled into the armchair by the fire. She noticed the fire was getting low, and looked around. Seeing no one was watching, she prodded the fire with her mind. She jumped when she heard McGonagall's voice behind her. "The headmaster wishes to see you."

Sarah stood immediately, her confusion evident on her face. "What about?"

"I'm not sure. I didn't think to ask." Her prim voice was reproachful. "You shouldn't keep him waiting."

Sarah shrugged and followed the deputy headmistress out through the corridors, arriving at the gargoyle sooner than she had expected.

"The password is sherbet lemons." McGonagall whisked off before she could respond.

Sarah shrugged again and enunciated, "Sherbet Lemons."

She stepped onto the familiar stair case and let it whisk her to the door of Dumbledore's office. Whistling a jaunty tune, she knocked on the door and waited for him to bid her entry. When she heard his voice, she opened the door and, about to waltz in there with a carefree attitude she had used in the two months before the term had started, she stopped herself.

Sitting there were Harry, Ron and Hermione, all staring at her with unreadable faces. She put on her nervous student face, and asked, "You wanted to see me, headmaster?"

He smiled warmly at her, putting her only slightly at ease. "Yes, please sit Sarah. I think we should wait for Professor Trebond, before we discuss anything. Minerva is fetching her now."

Sarah knew something was wrong. Why else would he want to speak with Sarah _and_ Alanna in the presence of Harry, Ron and Hermione? She took her seat in front of his desk, next to Hermione. The other girl refused to meet her eyes.

They didn't have long to wait before Alanna walked into the room, looking puzzled. Her expression changed when she saw the crowd around the headmaster's desk, and she asked Dumbledore, "What's going on?"

The old man smiled, his eyes twinkling. "Please sit." He waited until she was seated next to Sarah before continuing. "These three have an interesting theory about you two."

Sarah glanced sharply at Harry. He glared at her. She groaned, glancing at Dumbledore before sinking her face in her hands. "Our cover's blown, isn't it?"

The headmaster's smile never left his face. "I told you they have a particular propensity for discovering secrets and finding trouble."

She replied, almost melancholic, "I'll never be a good spy. You might as well tell George, Alanna. I know he hoped I could be a super spy and skulk around the Tusaine border, making sure there were no wars about to be started…"

Alanna slapped her lightly on the arm. "Stop rambling. You're scaring your new friends."

Sarah cast a glance at them. "I suppose I owe you an explanation." She turned to Dumbledore. "Do you mind if I oblige their curious minds?"

He shook his head. "Not at all."

She turned to Hermione, Ron and Harry. "Alright, listen up because I don't like to repeat myself. I don't actually come from Australia. Well, I do, but not _this_ Australia. I come from a different dimension, and I've been sent here to help _you_, Harry, defeat Voldemort."

Ron winced at his name and Hermione absentmindedly slapped him lightly on the arm. "Stop it," She ordered him softly. "Go on."

Sarah continued, lazing back on the arm chair. "Anyway, it all started about eight and a half months back, when I was pulled into _her_-" She pointed to Alanna, "Dimension. I was told by the gods that I was to train as a knight, a shang warrior and a mage. I trained for about five and a half months, under mainly Alanna's tutelage, until the gods moved up the mission. They made me enter the Chamber of the Ordeal, and no one, myself included, thought I was going to survive. I did, and I passed, becoming a Knight of the realm of Tortall. After that I was pretty much sent on the mission straight away. I found out two months ago that I wasn't through with missions; Mithros, that's one of the gods, sent me here, to help you."

Their mouths hung open. Reviewing the story in her mind, she realised why they were so awestruck. She would be too, if she hadn't lived it. Turning to Dumbledore, she noticed his face bore a surprised expression. "What?" She demanded. "Haven't you heard that yet?"

He shook his head slightly. "I just received word from Mithros that he was to send someone to help with our… problem. He spared me the details of your training." He turned to Hermione, whose face was turning slowly red with shame. "Did you share your theories with anyone else, Miss Granger?"

She shook her head, and turned to Sarah. "No. Sarah- I'm sorry. I didn't mean to snoop…"

Sarah cocked her head. "Don't you mean to apologize to Professor Trebond?" She asked curiously, receiving a hit to the arm courtesy of Alanna.

"Stop it. It's good for youngsters like them to be alert. Were you anyone else, they might have just saved their own skins." Alanna said practically.

Sarah shrugged. "I just wanted to know…"

Already Hermione was apologizing. Alanna waved it off.

Dumbledore interrupted. "Miss Granger, Mister Potter, Mister Weasley, I must ask that you keep this to yourself. It would be best this information was kept out of Voldemort's hands, don't you agree?" They nodded. "Now, I think we should all be getting to dinner. Shall we?"

Sarah nodded, eager for some food. Turning to Alanna, she whined, "I can't believe we didn't even last _one day!_ How pathetic are we! George is your husband; you should have been able to manage a little longer!"

"Me?" Alanna asked, outraged, shoving Sarah roughly. "It was _you _they overheard."

Harry, Hermione and Ron watched them interact, amused. Sarah turned to them, her face serious. "Was I really that obvious? Seriously, tell me. I need to know."

Hermione shook her head. "Not really, but we have a lot of experience dealing with people pretending to be someone they aren't. First there was Quirrell-"

Ron cut her off. "Then Lockhart."

Harry added, "Then Barty Crouch, pretending to be Mad Eye."

Hermione finished. "Then Umbridge, the two faced cow."

Harry and Ron stared at her. Ron was the first to recover. "She's finally cracked."

Harry shook her head. "Straight to St. Mungo's for you."

Hermione shook her head. "She was. All those awful things she did. Punishing you for telling the truth, Harry."

Sarah cut them off. "Okay, so you're experienced. It doesn't stop the fact that I should be ashamed for my dismal performance." They turned into the dining hall, and Alanna split off from the group, making her way to the teacher's table, where Dumbledore was some how already sitting.

They sat in the same place as the previous night, and Dumbledore stood. "Just one notice. The sign up sheets for the Defence Without A Wand course will be posted on the notice board in the great hall after dinner. I understand some of you have already had a taste of what will come should you choose to sign up, but perhaps a demonstration…"

Sarah glared daggers at the headmaster as she stood in her place, moving to the front of the hall. Alanna was already standing there, rolling her eyes at Sarah. The headmaster was continuing. "What I didn't mention before, when I introduced Miss Gibson and Professor Trebond is that they both hail from the same school. Sarah is one of Professor Trebond's most promising students in the arts of defence without a wand, and thus agreed to transfer here with our newest staff member to both further her education and aid in your own."

_Smooth._ Sarah thought. _It gives us an opportunity to speak freely with each other in the hall and other places, without arousing undue suspicion. Still, I wish he would give us warning before springing a leak in our cover story like that…_

At Dumbledore's signal, Sarah took a step away from Alanna and bowed to her. The bow was returned, and they offered one to Dumbledore for good measure. At Dumbledore's call of 'Guard!' Sarah launched into a defensive position.

They circled each other; there was plenty of room at the front of the hall, before the teacher's dining table. Alanna threw a quick ball of magic at her, it shined purple in the candlelit hall. Sarah erected a quick shield, knocking the ball away at an angle that sent it towards the frightened first years of Ravenclaw. Alanna twisted her hand; the ball disappeared.

Sarah grinned, feeling more alive than she had in months. Quietly, just loud enough for Alanna to hear her, she asked, "Why don't we make this interesting?" Without waiting for her mentor to respond she launched herself at the red head, throwing a punch at her head. Alanna barely caught it, and moved to sweep her feet out from beneath her.

Sarah jumped above the downward sweep and threw up a controlled screen of light, dazzling Alanna but leaving everyone else unscathed by the blindness. She moved behind the older woman with a burst of speed and grabbed her in a headlock before the red head could respond. She whispered in Alanna's ear, "Break it, I'll let you. You need to win, your student can't wipe the floor with you if you want anyone to show you respect in class."

Alanna gave an imperceptible nod and thrust an elbow back, connecting solidly with Sarah's stomach. She doubled over as her breath left her body. Alanna kicked the back of her shins, forcing her to her knees as she grabbed her right arm. Twisting it around painfully, she forced Sarah onto the flagstones. "Not so hard." Sarah muttered. Louder, she said, "I yield!"

Alanna helped her up. They bowed to each other again, and bowed to Dumbledore. Finally, they turned and bowed to their audience. The Slytherins were snickering at Sarah; her eyes flashed. Loudly, she called out. "And now, a volunteer, perhaps from the Slytherin table?"

They fell silent and it was the Gryffindor's turn to snicker. Sarah grinned, her job done as she moved quickly back to her table and sat down, rubbing her arm. Dumbledore stood once more. "As I said, the sign up board will be in the great hall; I urge as many of you join up as possible.

Before Sarah could react, dinner was on the table and she was fending off questions from Seamus and Dean. "Where'd you learn to fight like _that_?" The Irish boy asked.

Sarah shrugged. "As Professor Dumbledore said; Professor Trebond was my teacher back home."

She answered their other questions as best as she could, but many of them were the same as the first, reiterated differently. She sent a pleading expression to Ron and Harry, and they rescued her by distracting the other two boys with questions of their own.

Sarah sighed and dug into her dinner. When she needed something to wash the food down, she noticed Neville was staring at her. She tried smiling at him. "Can you pass me the pumpkin juice?"

He nodded wordlessly, passing the pitcher. When dinner was over, he was out of the door faster than anyone, and gone by the time Sarah, Ron, Hermione and Harry had deigned to finish their dinner he was gone, fleeing back to the common room. Sarah sent the other three back too, she waited with Alanna to see how many people signed up to their course. When the final students trickled out of the hall, they walked up to the sign up board. Sarah let out a low whistle. "It looks like most of the students signed up." She scanned the list of names. "Except the Slytherins. But that's okay… Hey, look who's up the top."

There was Neville's name, in his neat script, at the very top of the list. Sarah shook her head and made her way to the common room, bidding Alanna goodnight. "I'll see you in the morning? Getting up to train?"

Alanna nodded. "See you by the steps to the castle." She turned and headed to her own rooms as Sarah gave the password to the Fat Lady. Looking for Neville, she couldn't see the taller boy, and frowned. Ignoring questions from Parvati and Lavender, she walked up the stairs to the dormitory, content to sleep until morning. It was Hermione that reminded her of their potions homework, and they spent the rest of the evening writing an essay on the uses of moonstones in potions.

PAGE BREAK!!!

The lessons became a habit, and by the start third week of term Sarah and Alanna had worked up a plan for their first Defence Without a Wand lesson. The Slytherins, who had initially been cowed from their taunting of the Gryffindor students in her presence, had mustered their courage again and were back to making fun of 'Potty and Weasel'. Malfoy had even mustered the courage to taunt Sarah, until she looked up at him with the coldest eyes she could manage and arched her eyebrow at him.

Everytime she managed her 'Angry Queen Thayet' expression, he shut his mouth for at least an hour, terrified by her skill with a magic he didn't understand, and her obvious ability to beat him to a pulp without it.

Sarah found herself outside, on a sunny Saturday afternoon at the beginning of Autumn, standing before a group of first year students. It was her third Saturday since the beginning of term, and this was the first official lesson her and Alanna had planned.

Sarah was nervous about the concept of teaching children defence; she had no experience in the matter, other than the occasion trick weaselled out of her by Harry or Ron. Fifteen first years had signed up, a number that Sarah thought was respectable, considering none of them were Slytherins.

Alanna and Sarah watched them carefully as almost every first year from Gryffindor, Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff stood before them, wide eyed and nervous. Sarah scanned the crowd, and saw the same innocence she saw in first year pages. She shook her head ruefully and turned to Alanna. "You ready?"

The red head nodded, and Sarah knew she watched not only with her eyes but with her Gift also. Sarah cleared her throat. "Listen up! Every lesson we will warm up and warm down, without fail. This is every bit as important as the lesson itself; a limber body is the only way you'll be able to complete an hour of training with me. First, we stretch our arms like this-" She demonstrated, feeling the muscles in her arm stretch, and a smile spread over her face. "We hold it for a count of ten-" She watched their faces as they struggled to hold the stretch. Finally she released them, and led them in other stretches, thoroughly warming up their arms, legs and the rest of their bodies.

When they were finished the warm up she demonstrated a proper punch, and the proper stance to throw it from. When she was satisfied they had the gist of it, she roamed the group, arranged in three rows of five, correcting a stance here, or a blow there. During the drills she turned to Alanna, and whispered to her, "How am I expected to teach these half pints when I'm not even finished learning?"

Alanna whispered back, amused, "You're learning far exceeds mine when it comes to hand to hand combat. And I doubt Dumbledore wants them walking around with a sword. You're the best tool for this task, Sarah. Their only kids, they won't bite."

Sarah scowled, and a Ravenclaw first year squeaked. She rolled her eyes. "And now I'm scaring the kids." Louder, she said, "Alright, that's enough punching for today. I'm going to teach you one more technique, and show you some things you can do to strengthen your muscles. After that we'll have meditation, and we'll finish the lesson."

The second technique was a strong lower block. Sarah showed them how it should look, first practicing slowly, and then with lightning speed. She straightened. "Practice that forty times on each arm. It'll block any attack aimed between your knee and your waist. Go."

She wandered around once again, correcting stances and blocks as she watched Alanna out of the corner of her eye. The red head was giving her a weird look. After she had made her rounds, she joined Alanna at the head of the group. Muttering without turning her head, she asked, "What's wrong?"

Alanna kept her eyes forward also. "Nothing, why?"

"You were staring at me." Sarah surveyed the first years, as they one by one became tired and faltered. She noticed a young Gryffindor was still performing them perfectly, and she smiled in encouragement.

Alanna walked over and corrected the stance of a Hufflepuff boy, and returned to Sarah, getting her attention. "I just noticed how good you are with the children. You're a born leader, you know that?"

Sarah started, meeting Alanna's eyes, forgetting the students as they practiced. Suddenly she scowled. "Don't throw me off guard like that. I'm no leader; I'm best at following orders."

Sarah ignored Alanna as she scoffed. She took the opportunity to clap her hands loudly. "Alright, that's enough. I know this lesson was a little boring- I just wanted to determine your skill levels before things got interesting. Now we'll practice some activities that'll build your muscles. I don't expect you to be good at them- yet. You'll need to practice them at least three times during the week. When I was training I practiced three times a _day_, before breakfast, in my lunch hour, and after dinner. If you don't next week's lesson will be that much harder."

Sarah surveyed their bright faces, realising that this was probably the easiest lesson she was going to get. "Alright, everyone on the ground. Push ups first." She led them in push ups, sit ups, lunges and finally a warm down. Sarah handed the reins over to Alanna, who was watching her once again, and settled into her meditative position on the ground. As Alanna led the students in their first meditation, Sarah grasped her amber stone, the one that the Goddess had given her, and watched carefully as Alanna coaxed any magic out into the open.

_There. Yellow and a light blue…_ She watched the two Ravenclaw girls through half lidded eyes. Their eyes were closed; their breath came in a slow rhythm. _Looks like meditation is a second nature to them too…Ah, is that Hufflepuff boy turning slightly green? Three in one session; perhaps their existing connections to the magical world has influenced their development. If this trait continues we'll find quite a concentration of Gifted individuals here…_

When an hour had passed Alanna brought them out of their meditation. Some, like the promising young Gryffindor she had noticed, couldn't wait to stand up and shake out his limbs. Others, like the three she had spotted, had an odd look on their face. Sarah quietly pointed out the three Gifted students she had noticed; they were singled out to stay behind.

Rather than sit around for the explanation, Sarah told Alanna quietly that she was going for a run. She set about the circumference of the Forbidden Forest; waving the Hagrid as she jogged past.

She started past the lake, and slowed her jog to a walk. She looked to the sky. _This is probably the last warm day for a while. Who knows when I'll get back to Tortall; it all depends on Harry and when he's strong enough to fight Voldemort. This is probably the last chance I'll get to go for a swim._

She looked down at herself. She was wearing her light training breeches; they weren't a hindrance swimming. She unbuttoned her shirt; she had a singlet on underneath. She slipped her boots off and waded hesitantly into the water. When the water got deep enough she started stroking in freestyle; a strong, even stroke that carried her quickly from the shore. For a brief instant, Sarah treaded water. She grinned recklessly, and took a deep breath, before diving underwater. Sarah looked around in wonder. She didn't realise how deep the lake was when she had started swimming.

Something flashed in front of her. Sarah's eyes widened. She went in for a closer look; heading for the space she had seen the unknown object in. Something else moved behind her. She spun as quickly as possible; there was a tentacle headed for her with terrifying speed. Dodging, Sarah breathed out suddenly in surprise, and kicked for the surface, her lungs burning. Her head broke the surface and swam as fast as she could for the shore.

No more tentacles came after her, but Sarah didn't dare to turn around to check for them until she had reached the shore. Pulling herself onto the sand she muttered a quick drying spell, and turned to see the surface of the lake. There, in the centre of the lake, was a giant squid thrashing about, half emerged from the surface, with about ten tentacles whipping around in the air. Sarah's eyes widened; her face paled.

Her eyes never left the surface as she reached blindly for her shirt, and after pulling it on and leaving it unbuttoned, she reached for her soft leather boots. When she was completely dressed, Sarah turned quickly and dashed back to the castle. By the time she reached the castle steps she was breathless; more from shock and amazement than exertion.

Sarah was staring back in the direction of the lake when the doors to the castle swung open and Harry, Ron and Hermione walked out, chatting amiably. They noticed Sarah and stopped. "Hi!" Hermione said cheerfully.

Sarah glared venomously at the trio. Immediately Harry was on his guard. "What? What's wrong?"

Her glare didn't soften, but her voice was too sweet when she asked, "Why didn't anyone tell me there was a bloody _squid_ in the lake!?"

Harry, Ron and Hermione looked confused. "We forgot. Why?"

If Sarah's glare could kill, the three students would have been decapitated by now. She got up in Ron's face and hissed vehemently, "I went for a swim." Without waiting for a response she stormed past them and into the castle, ignoring them as they called after her.

Alanna found her later in the Gryffindor common room, fuming. She took one look at her student and burst out laughing, drawing the attention of several students in the common room. She pulled Sarah out of her chair by the fire, where the younger woman was brooding, and yanked her out into the corridor.

The red head tried to look serious as she asked her, "Tell me what happened."

Sarah glared at her teacher. "I'm sure you know very well what happened. Did _you_ know there was a giant bloody _squid_ in the lake?" She demanded.

Alanna shook her head. "I would have told you. I'm sure it just slipped their minds."

Sarah glowered. Churlishly, she said, "I have no idea how a giant _squid_ could slip their minds."

Alanna couldn't help it, she started laughing uncontrollably. Wiping tears of mirth from her eyes, she dragged Sarah in the direction of the entrance hall. "Come on, we'll go see Hagrid. That'll cheer you up."

Sarah nodded her consent. About half way down, she asked her teacher, "How'd you know anyway?"

Alanna shrugged. "Your friends saw me on the way up to the castle and told me you were really upset about something. They told me they'd never seen you so angry. Hermione especially looked worried."

Sarah sighed gustily. "I suppose I had better apologize to them for being so angry… the damn thing nearly gave me a heartattack though! One minute I'm having a leisurely swim, the next there's a ten meter long tentacle _flying_ at me! I almost drowned, I was so shocked."

Alanna laughed again, and Sarah had to join her in laughing. When they had recovered, Sarah turned to her seriously. "If you tell a single living soul back home about this, I swear to the gods I will kill you. Seriously, they will _never_ let me live it down. Can you imagine, Wildcat finding out?"

After she had forced an oath from Alanna they continued towards Hagrid's hut. Knocking loudly, she called, "Hagrid! We've come for a visit."

The half giant appeared at the doorway. Hissing in his not-quite-a-whisper whisper, he said worriedly, "Harry's here! You'll blow your cover!"

Sarah blinked and looked around his large frame. Sure enough, the trio sat there, staring in surprise. Sarah turned back to Hagrid. "Don't worry, we blew our cover on the first day. They over heard us talking. The rest of the school still doesn't know, but these three know the entire story."

He looked relieved, and Alanna and Sarah shared an amused smirk. Sarah's face turned immediately contrite when she looked at the three students she had befriended. "Um… about before…"

Hermione shot up to hug her friend. "Are you okay? Oh my god, I am so _sorry_ I didn't warn you, I just didn't think about it…"

Sarah laughed and held up her hands, breaking the embrace. "I'm fine. And _I'm_ the one who should be apologizing. I didn't mean to snap… it's just that… well it was terrifying, seeing a giant _squid_ in the lake. How the _hell_ did it get there, anyway?"

Hermione looked like she was about to launch into one of her trademark lectures, and Sarah, Ron and Harry started talking quickly, trying to cover up Hermione as she began with, "It's all in Hogwarts: A History…"

Alanna watched her student, a smile spreading over her face slowly. Quietly, she spoke to Hagrid. "It's good seeing her interact with people closer to her own age; for almost six months she only had us oldies. The closest person was Daine, and she… well she grew up pretty fast." Hagrid nodded, having been told a lot about the young Wildmage. "She hasn't been happy, not truly happy, for months."

Hagrid asked, his voice quieter than Alanna had ever heard it. "Why not?"

Alanna shook her head, and prepared to wade into the teenagers' conversation. "You'll have to ask her that, though I doubt she'll answer you. She almost didn't tell me."

TBC


	4. Chapter 3

Chapter Three:

Sarah thrashed. She was back in the alley, the one in Tortall. The one where the man had almost… She couldn't think about that now. Clutching for the amber at her throat, she saw a ghost of the chamber's flag stones. Sarah gritted her teeth. The Chamber of the Ordeal, where she was forbidden to speak, was one of the worst things that had happened to her in her life.

The man advanced, and Sarah felt the familiar sensation of helplessness as the man climbed onto her, grinning crookedly. She fumbled, panicking, against his advances, not making a sound. Frantic, she sent a silent prayer to the gods that it would stop before he got very far. It seemed they answered her prayer, and the scenery changed.

She was lying in dirt, and she heard the yowl of a hyena. _Oh no. Oh no no no…_ She thought. The hyena stalked her, and the rat and cur dog flanked it. They were giant, looming over her head. Suddenly there was a pressure on her upper body, and she thrashed uncontrollably. The hyena, Slaughter, was on top of her. Remembering this wasn't the Chamber, she screamed, loudly, as she had when Slaughter had attacked her the first time.

A voice sounded in her mind. "Sarah, wake up! It's just a bad dream, Sarah!"

She bolted upright, gasping for air even as she almost knocked heads with Hermione. Sarah sat hunched over, her head in her hands, even as tears streamed down her face. She ignored Hermione's worried questions, and the looks Parvati and Lavender were giving her. Hermione gave a look of apology to the other two girls and pulled the blinds closed, climbing onto the large four poster beside Sarah. "Sarah." She laid a hand on Sarah's shoulder. "What's wrong?"

Sarah shook herself out of her reverie enough to snap, "Nothing." And whipped the blinds open, stalking into the bathroom, stopping only to close the door behind her. Hermione watched her, confused at what had transpired, and worried for her friend.

Sarah was grumpy through out the entire day, and the day's Defence Without a Wand lesson ran the fourth years ragged. Alanna berated her for being so harsh on the kids, and Sarah shrugged.

The next morning the scene repeated itself, and Hermione roused her once again. "You know, sometimes it's easier if you talk about it." The other girl spoke quietly; this time Lavender and Parvati had slept through Sarah's antics.

Sarah shook her head. "I don't want to talk about it, Herm." Her mind reeled as she considered why the nightmares have returned, after almost two months without them. _I must be getting used to the change in schedule; normally I'm too tired between learning, teaching and my own training sessions to dream._ Sarah busied herself with getting dressed.

When she was ready for the morning's lessons, she walked out the dorm rooms and into the common room, hoping for the presence of any other students; Hermione was less likely to press her for answers in public.

That evening, during the fifth year's training, Sarah took Alanna's scolding to heart and went easy on the students, much to the relief of Ginny, who had heard about the previous day's from her younger friends. Sarah found three Gifted students from the fifth years, including the youngest Weasley; this made a total of thirteen so far. Three from first year, two from the second, four from the third year and one from the fourth year.

Sarah was grumpy the entire evening, and Harry and Ron avoided her. Hermione persisted, prying even as Sarah gritted her teeth and told her to go away. The next morning she managed to awake before her dream turned into the mission for the Gods; she kept quiet enough that Hermione didn't notice.

That day's classes flew by; Sarah passed the time in a tired daze, drifting from Transfiguration to Divination, where the incense almost lulled her completely, to Charms, where Flitwick kindly left her to her to her fatigue while he taught the class the charm for putting out fires.

By the time the sixth years' Defence Without a Wand class had rolled around Sarah was irritable and grumpier than ever; Harry and Ron exchanged glances as they walked with her and Hermione towards the section set aside for their lesson. Sarah drew up short when she noticed Malfoy and his cronies, as well as Blaise and Millicent, two of his Slytherin friends standing near the group, looking smug.

Sarah scowled and walked up to Alanna. "What are they doing here?" She hissed. "They weren't on the sign up sheet!"

Alanna shrugged. "Try telling Dumbledore that. He said we can't deny them the opportunity to learn what we're teaching."

Malfoy took this time to speak up. "Kind of you to grace us with your presence!"

Alanna's face reddened, she decided that her tongue had gone without sharpening for far too long. "Shut your trap. You and your friends are lucky to be here at all, if it were up to me you'd be in your little dungeon, socialising or doing your homework, not out here wasting our time! For your information, I can take points off of your house if you talk back to either myself or Sarah. Is that understood Mr Malfoy?"

He muttered, "Yeah, sure Professor Trebond. Whatever you say…"

Sarah joined Alanna in glaring at him. Suddenly, the glare turned into an evil grin. She whispered to Alanna, "It's Wildcat time." And the older knight's glare also turned into a wicked smile.

Louder, Sarah put her best impersonation of a drill sergeant, and yelled, "Alright maggots, on your feet! This is no time for lazing, warm up starts right now! Like this." She lowered herself into the splits, glaring at the rest of the students, daring them to disagree. They tried, they really did. Sarah glared at them, yelling, "Wider! Try harder! This isn't preschool; I'm not your nanny!"

She passed about them, pushing the students down softly, or, in the Slytherin student's cases, rather strongly. "Deeper Malfoy." She growled in his ear. She heard him whine, like a dog in pain, and grinned wolfishly.

As she passed each of the other students, she apologized to them softly, keeping her face mean but her voice kind. When they had finished the stretching in a fashion Sarah assured them was pathetic, she led them in punches. To the Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs and Gryffindors of the group, she went soft. But the Slytherins received the full brunt of her disappointment. "You call that a punch Goyle?! I taught you how to punch better during our first lesson, or did you push the memory out of your head with that last cupcake at dinner?"

Her roar challenged even Sarge's, she decided as she watched the slow, large, young man punch in a better fashion. She told him of the improvement, her voice cold. "Better. Not _good_, not even adequate. But better."

Each of the Slytherins were exchanging glances now, Malfoy spoke up at the end of the punching. "When are you going to teach us to fight like you did? Or was it all an illusion, a trick to promote your class? I'll bet you can't even do it again!"

Sarah walked up to him, standing scant centimetres in front of him as Harry and Ron started forward. Alanna stopped them with an amused shake of her head. Sarah paid them no heed as she chuckled softly. Malfoy looked about ready to wet his pants. "Did you hear of the fourth year who tried to rush my training? He asked when they were going to learn to fight like myself. Did no one tell you what happened to him?"

Malfoy mustered his courage once again and shook his head. Sarah continued, her voice soft. She had learnt quickly that often the most frightening voice was not the loud, obnoxious yell, but a soft, dangerous murmur. "I made him fight me with what he had already learned. For him that was a punch and a lower block. For you, you don't have the benefit of the lower block." Her voice was louder as she snapped, "Front and centre. You'll see why you aren't _ready_ to learn how to fight properly."

As she passed Harry, Hermione and Ron she saw them grinning, and gave them a wink. In fact, everyone except the Slytherins were smiling. They were looking forward to the coming spectacle. Malfoy arranged himself in a fighting stance; Sarah could see his feet were too close. She didn't bother correcting him. She gestured with one hand for him to step forward, to attack, and watched as he lunged at her, coming in with a left handed punch which Sarah blocked easily.

She toyed with him for a few moments before bringing his arm up around and pinning it to his back. She forced him to his knees savagely. "What was that about learning to fight like I do? You haven't the strength, nor the skill, to fight like I do."

Due to the time taken with the demonstration, Sarah didn't have the time to teach the sixth years the lower block. Instead, Alanna led them in the meditation while Sarah watched for signs of the Gift from the students. Partway through she noticed a pink haze filling the frame of Hermione; Sarah's eyes widened in surprise. She also noticed a grey haze rising from Malfoy. Sarah's eyes widened further, and she almost swore at her misfortune. When the meditations were over, Sarah spoke quietly to Alanna. The seasoned knight _did_ swear, but called Malfoy over with Hermione anyway.

As she explained the situation to the two Gifted students, Sarah explained it to Harry and Ron. Their reaction to Malfoy's Gift was the same; glowering annoyance. The blond boy left, a weird, almost confused look on his face as he drifted towards the castle. Hermione turned to Harry and Ron, an uncertain grin on her face. They launched into a hug, congratulating her.

"Wow, 'Mione! Now you have something _new_ to learn… and you can't even skip ahead because there aren't any books on this in the library!" Ron teased.

Sarah grinned even as Hermione scowled. The bushy haired girl's scowl turned into a sly look. "Of course, who needs a book when I have my very own expert sleeping in my dorms?"

Sarah held up her hands. "Hey, I'm still just a student."

Alanna chose this time to speak up. "You're an adept; still more than qualified to teach Hermione for at least a few months."

Sarah glared at her teacher and friend, but it collapsed soon after into a grin. "Alright, I'll help you, if only to make sure Malfoy doesn't proceed faster than you. I still can't believe that twat has the Gift. What a waste…"

Sarah shook her head as she spoke, and yawned. "I have some potions work I need to do by tomorrow guys, I'll see you all later."

Hermione and Alanna shared a worried look, but let her go. They watched as she trudged slowly up to the castle, and Alanna turned to Hermione. "She's not getting much sleep, is she?" The other girl shook her head. Alanna scowled. "Nightmares, right? I'll talk to her after dinner…"

Hermione shook her head. "I've already tried talking to her… she won't tell me what's wrong."

Alanna smiled grimly. "I already know what's wrong. If there's anyone here that she'll talk to, it's me."

PAGE BREAK!!!

Dinner passed without event, although Sarah almost fell asleep in her bowl of soup. She yawned loudly, and as she stood to leave Alanna gestured her over. Sarah walked over, and followed the red head into her office, which was several corridors away on the second floor. Sarah perched lightly on a chair. "What's up?"

Alanna fixed her with a serious look and replied, "I could ask you the same question."

Sarah frowned. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Alanna rolled her eyes. "That's worse than the old 'I fell.' You haven't been sleeping well, have you?"

Sarah swore. "I'm gonna kill her, I really am. I'm fine Alanna, just a few nightmares."

The red head's expression filled with pity; Sarah looked away rather than face it. "About the Ordeal or the mission?"

"Both." When Sarah spoke now her voice came out as a rasped whisper. She tried to keep the memories from surfacing, without much luck.

Blinking back tears, she realised anything Alanna was taking her hands and speaking. "Do you want me to make you a sleeping draught? We have all the ingredients here for a pretty strong one."

Sarah stood and shook her head. "I'll be fine. Don't worry about me, I'm just not getting enough work done during the day; I'll get a better night's sleep if I'm too tired to dream."

The red head examined her with a concerned gaze before nodding sharply. "If they continue much longer though, I'll be forceful. You can't wear yourself out like this; you're needed for a mission, remember?"

Sarah nodded and turned to leave the room. As an after thought she said, "Thanks Alanna. For everything."

The Lioness smiled. "It's nothing. Go and get some sleep Sarah."

Sarah drifted into the common room and made her way straight up to the sixth year girls' dorm room. Hermione shot up and followed her. When Sarah was loosening her tie and pulling off her cloak, the bushy haired girl spoke hesitantly. "Sarah… I'm sorry for going to Professor Trebond about it…"

"Call her Alanna when there's no one else around. She'll be more comfortably." Sarah said, not addressing the issue at hand.

"Sarah…" Hermione tried again.

This time Sarah fixed her with a long stare, before saying abruptly, "It's fine Hermione. She was noticing anyway. I'm going to get some sleep, alright? So if you're going to stay in here, can you be quiet?"

The other girl nodded, but left the room, closing the door softly. Sarah somehow managed to change into her pyjamas; she flopped onto the bed, exhausted. She barely managed to crawl under the covers, and when she did she fell into a deep sleep.

PAGE BREAK!!!

Hermione was already awake the next morning when Sarah started thrashing about, gritting her teeth and kicking out against an unknown assailant. She was at her friend's side in an instant. "Sarah!"

The other girl's eyes snapped open, and she gasped for long moments before she was able to swing her legs over the side of the bed, head held in her hands. Hermione sat next to her, rubbing her back comfortingly. "I wish you would tell me what's wrong…"

Sarah half turned her head, glancing at Hermione's worried face. "You really want to know, don't you?"

Hermione nodded. Sarah sighed. "Not here. Let's talk about it in private…"

They quickly showered and dressed, and Hermione was waiting by the time Sarah trudged out of the bathroom. Her stomach felt like it was going to drop out beneath her; she didn't like spilling her guts, not to anyone. Hermione took her arm and led her to Moaning Myrtle's bathroom. After being sat down on the tiles, Sarah grimaced. "An abandoned bathroom? Are you _sure_ you want to sit on the tiles here?"

Hermione laughed. "They're clean, just old. Will you tell me what's the matter?"

Sarah sighed and looked away. "The first part… I can't talk about much. It's forbidden… Do you remember that I told you I was a Knight of Tortall?" Hermione nodded, and Sarah continued. "Well, when you finish being a squire, you're sent into the Chamber of the Ordeal. I can't talk about what goes on in there; apparently bad things happen to those that do. As it is the Chamber is a _real_ Ordeal, and it haunts the nightmares of everyone who enters it. Alanna entered it over twenty years ago, and still I find her occasionally thrashing around about it. She was my knightmaster, by the way."

Sarah took a deep breath. "Some things happened to me, during my training… A man tried to…" Her voice broke and she cleared her throat. "Anyway, Alanna and Queen Thayet, who I was at the marketplace with at the time, came to my rescue. They saved me from him, and he went to hard labour on the mines as punishment. At first we thought he would only get two years; I was only a commoner. But Duke Turomet realised that a loop hole allowed me to be called a noble, meaning the guy got fifteen years in hard labour; he won't survive ten."

Hermione nodded, her face full of shock and pity. Sarah continued without meeting her eyes. "In my dreams… Alanna and Thayet don't make it in time. But that's all I can say. As for the second part… the one where I'm screaming? The mission the gods had for me wasn't exactly pleasant. I almost died. If the Black God hadn't taken pity on me, I would have died. It was like being deathly sick and starving at the same time… and then Slaughter, he causes wars, got into it and started carving me up with his claws… look." She rolled up the sleeve to her cloak and her jumper underneath. There were long scars running vertically and horizontally on her arms. "There's more like that all over my body. The one on my face was caused by Slaughter as well."

Hermione lunged forward in a hug; Sarah sat there, almost too stunned to move. When Hermione had recovered, she gave a watery smile. "I'm sorry, it's just… you sounded like you needed a hug."

Sarah gave a small chuckle. "Thanks for listening. Don't tell anyone, your looks of pity are more than enough for me." Hermione nodded. Sarah stood with a groan. "Ow… I guess I spent too much time torturing Malfoy yesterday and not enough time warming down…"

Hermione grinned. "You tortured us too. But it was worth it. I don't think him or his friends will be back next week."

Sarah cackled. "I took a page from the book of Wildcat; she was a _real_ terror. You never want to train with her, I'm serious. She used to pull me out of bed at dawn, or empty a bucket of water over me. I learned _real_ quick to get up before her."

Together they walked back to the common room, chatting amiably.

PAGE BREAK!!!

Thursday's Herbology lesson rolled around, and Sarah noticed Neville staring at her across the work table. After an hour of dodging his stares, Sarah finally snapped. "What? You've been staring at me for the entire lesson, what's the matter?"

He looked down. "Nothing." His face tinged with a blush.

Sarah growled but let it go. Class was not the place to discuss whatever his problem was; she needed to focus on the thorny plant that was trying to wrap itself around her wrist. _I don't care if it's useful for reducing fevers; it's still damn sharp._

When the lesson was over, and she had multiple scratches up her wrists, she caught up with the over grown boy, grabbing him by the arm and dragging him off the path. "Neville, what's the matter? Why do you keep staring at me?"

His feet shuffled, he looked down. Sarah didn't let his arm go; she thought he might bolt if she did. Quietly she said, "Neville, look at me."

Slowly he raised his eyes to meet hers. Quickly he looked away again. "I- I-" He started. She didn't press, but she didn't let go of his wrist either. Quietly he said, "I'd love to be able to fight like you. You were incredible, when you fought against Professor Trebond that second evening. And the magic…"

Sarah's softened with pity. "Neville… when we were meditating… I didn't see any of the Gift in you. I'm sorry."

His eyes shined with hope. "When we were meditating… I kind of fell asleep."

Sarah sighed. "Neville, meditations are…" Then she realised what he had said. "Really? Alright. We have potions next. After that, we'll go back to the common room… shoot, it'll be too loud there. Let's see…"

Neville spoke up. "I know a place we can meditate…"

Sarah nodded. "Alright, we'll go after potions."

PAGE BREAK!!!!!

Sarah heard Neville breathing, in… out…

Taking one last glance around the Room of Requirement, she closed her eyes. She wasn't used to leading someone in meditation; rather being led. She took a steadying breath. "Alright Neville. I need you to retreat into yourself. Keep breathing evenly. Clear your mind. Let it drift. It should drift to your core. If you have the Gift, you'll see it. Don't worry if it doesn't show up immediately…"

She waited a few minutes before asking softly, "What do you see?"

His voice was distant when he answered. "It's all black… but there looks like there's an oily ball there…"

Sarah opened her eyes and frowned. Clutching her amber stone, her frown deepened. There was nothing there. She sighed. _I guess he just wants it so badly…_ Sarah closed her eyes against his hopeful face. She really didn't want to disappoint him.

She let out a choked gasp as she noticed an outline against her closed eyelids. She hadn't let go of the amber stone; now she tightened her grasp. Muttering a quick spell to alter the colours she saw, she noticed his essence flared brightly in orange.

Calming herself; she was excited vicariously for Neville, she quietly said, "Alright, come back now. Get a hold of your spirit and bring yourself back to consciousness. Open your eyes."

He opened his eyes and looked at her hopefully. "Did you see anything?"

Sarah stared at him before answering, "Yours is the weirdest Gift I have ever seen."

He let out a whoop of joy before hugging her tightly. "You mean I can learn how to do wandless magic?! Thankyou, thankyou, thankyou!"

"N-Neville… I can't breathe. Now, we have to go tell Professor Trebond. She'll want to know."

She led him to Alanna's office and knocked quietly. When the red head noticed Sarah standing at the door she gestured her inside. About to open her mouth and say something that would probably blow their cover, she shut it quickly when she noticed Neville. "What can I do for you Sarah, Mr Longbottom?"

Sarah jerked her thumb at Neville. "I found another one."

Alanna frowned and touched the coal at her throat. When she saw nothing she looked confused. "I don't see anything."

Sarah looked nonchalant as she perched on the desk. "Use the spell of Sight, you know the one that shifts your perceptions? His Gift is clear."

Alanna gasped. "It is too… well Mr Longbottom, congratulations."

He turned red with embarrassment. "I- I'd like to spend more time than just an hour a week learning, if it's okay…"

Sarah smirked, but it disappeared when Alanna said, "Sure. I'm sure Sarah will be happy to teach you in your spare time."

Sarah spluttered, "What? No, no… its one thing for me to be teaching the hand to hand stuff, but I can't teach the Gift!"

Alanna shrugged. "Sure you can. You passed the adept's test, you can teach a beginner. You discovered his Gift, after all."

Sarah glared. "Fine. Come on Neville, first lesson, conjuring." She dragged the hapless boy behind her as she made her way back to the common room, annoyed at Alanna for thrusting the extra responsibility on her shoulders.

TBC


	5. Chapter 4

Chapter Four:

Sarah opened her eyes a crack and groaned. Her head felt like it had been split open with an axe; she felt like she was baking in an oven. Kicking the covers off, she lay panting. Even that small effort took a lot of energy. _I know what this is._ She thought grimly. _I'm sick. Damn it!_

Her muscles ached like she had been exercising for the entire day, her throat felt like sandpaper, and every breath was torture. She squeezed her eyes shut. _Oh come on! This is ridiculous! I'm going to get up…_ Sarah swung her sore legs over the side of the bed and attempted to stand. Her legs folded under her; she collapsed back onto the bed.

She groaned quietly, breathing harshly, trying to recover. Instead of attempting to stand again, she swung her legs back up onto the bed and pulled the covers up to her chin. She was suddenly too cold to even consider leaving the comfort of her bed. _Just a few more minutes… then I'll try again. _She let her eyes close against the predawn light, and her breathing deepened.

Someone was shaking her shoulder. Sarah groaned in pain. "Not so hard… my arm hurts… my _everything_ hurts." She rolled over, turning her back to her unknown assailant.

Hermione frowned and put a hand to Sarah's forehead. Her eyes widened in alarm. "Sarah, you're burning up! I'm going to get Madam Pomfrey, I'll be back as soon as I can."

Sarah's arm shot out like a snake, grasping Hermione's wrist. Coughing lightly she muttered, "Not Madam Pomfrey… get Alanna…"

Hermione nodded and Sarah let her go, letting her eyes drift shut again. All she wanted to do was sleep. She awoke to someone shaking her shoulder gently, again. She opened her eyes, and they focused slowly on a red head with amethyst eyes, looking worriedly down at Sarah from her perch on the side of the bed. Hermione was sitting on the other side. Sarah muttered, "Good morning." Before an uncontrollable coughing fit hit her; she doubled over as she hacked and wheezed.

Alanna frowned and offered her a glass of water. "How did you get so ill so quickly?"

Sarah took a long sip, breathing out slowly as the water trickled down her sore, dry throat. "I had a bit of a headache yesterday… I thought it was just stress, you know, from teaching Hermione to light things on fire while Neville singed his own _eyebrows off!"_

Her sarcastic remark came out as a whisper, Alanna sighed. "Alright then, let's get you fixed up." She reached into herself for her Gift, aiming to heal Sarah of her flu. When she tried to apply the magic she frowned. For some reason it was just washing off of Sarah, not affecting her in the slightest.

Before she could try again there was a loud crack; Mithros was standing in the middle of the girls' dormitory. Alanna bowed deeply while she checked the rest of the beds in the room; Parvati and Lavender were already gone; having left for class before Alanna had come in. She sighed in relief before asking the god, "What's happening? Why can't I heal Sarah?"

His answer made her scowl before she remembered who she was talking to. "You can't heal her; for the purposes of this mission foreign magics don't affect her easily."

"What? Well can _you_ heal her then?"

He looked thoughtful. "I _could._ I'm not going to, however. She needs to learn humility in the face of the gods. She cannot continue to talk to us in the manner she has been."

Hermione exploded in a rage that did Alanna proud. "What?! That is the most ridiculous-" The rest of her response was muffled by Sarah's hand as she held it determinedly over the other girl's mouth.

Sarah winced; upright wasn't a good position for her. Mithros chose that moment to leave, rather than continue to argue about the situation. Alanna let out a gusty sigh. "I guess we'll need to try a natural remedy. We'll still need to get her to the infirmary; we can't have the rest of you kids getting sick."

Sarah swung her legs over the side of the bed obligingly, but that was the extent of her abilities. Alanna and Hermione hoisted her over their shoulders, one on each side, and helped her to the infirmary. When they got there, (_Thankgod__ everyone else is in class, or this would be really embarrassing,_ Sarah thought), Alanna took Madam Pomfrey aside and explained to her what Mithros had said.

Pomfrey looked shocked, and then uncomfortable. "I've never dealt with a fever using the muggle way… I've only ever used magic to heal them."

Alanna was quick to reassure her. "Don't worry, I have plenty of experience. We'll need a cold wash cloth and lots of blankets to begin with. We'll also need some lemon and some herbs, I'll tell you which ones, for a tea to soothe her throat."

Pomfrey nodded and set about the tasks Alanna had given her while Alanna tucked Sarah in tight to her blankets. Her young charge had drifted off while Alanna talked with the other healer; now she tossed and turned, quietly moaning.

Sitting by her bed, Alanna stroked her forehead softly. She turned to Hermione, "You should get to class."

The other girl opened her mouth to argue but closed it instead. "Alright…" She cast one last, uncertain glance at Sarah before leaving the infirmary.

When Madam Pomfrey returned with the blankets Alanna piled them on top of Sarah; her student kicked them off, moaning softly. Alanna scowled and pulled them back up to her chin; the scene repeated itself. The red head tucked her in _tightly_, determined that Sarah wouldn't kick them off a third time; Sarah started struggling, fighting the pressure as though she was fighting someone in her dreams.

Alanna sighed and loosened the blankets, smoothing her pupil's hair out of her eyes soothingly. The girl calmed down under her ministrations, and Alanna replaced the wet wash cloth on her brow. A voice sounded behind her. "How is she?"

"She has a fever, it's pretty bad. She's been running herself ragged this last week; she hasn't been sleeping well, but she wouldn't accept a sleeping draught. I didn't think she'd get sick this easily; she used to get up at four thirty in the morning to train and stay up late to meditate when she was training for her first mission; she never got sick then." She answered Dumbledore.

He entered her field of vision, moving around the other side of the bed. "Has she had any true rest since the first mission?"

Alanna sighed. "Not really. If the seriousness of the mission wasn't hanging over her head it was- I'd better not say, she doesn't like to talk about it." Alanna changed her words midsentence.

Dumbledore nodded gravely. "Best she tells people in her own time, I think, if it is personal."

Alanna's eyes never left Sarah's face as she gently stroked the crown of the girl's head. It made her miss her own children, back in Tortall. She pushed the thoughts aside, shaking her head. She'd been away longer before; the king had sent her on border patrols and to fight of the Scanrans when they invaded.

Sarah's eyes fluttered open. "A-Alanna? About what Mithros said…" Her voice was strained, and the effort of speaking sent her into a coughing fit. Alanna forced some tea down her throat before allowing the girl to continue. "He said that foreign magics can't affect me easily… you and Numair never taught me healing magic. We only focused on war magic. Maybe…" Her body was wracked with coughs once again.

Alanna rubbed her back in concern. "You're much too sick to be practicing now. Don't worry, you'll be fine with a few days rest. Now go back to sleep…"

Sarah's eyes drifted closed again; her breathing deepened and Alanna left her side, drawing the curtains closed around her. She couldn't keep the concern off of her face; Dumbledore noticed.

His face grew thoughtful. "I believe Mr Potter and Miss Granger could be of assistance with this matter; they are quite fluent in the muggle world… Would you be so kind as to fetch them, Alanna? They're in potions at the moment… and Mr Weasley would probably be grateful for the opportunity to miss some potions too." His eyes twinkled, even as Alanna's face grew confused.

"Why do we need information on the muggle world?" Having been stuck in Hogwarts for the entire time before the term started and after, Alanna hadn't had anyone to talk to about the muggle world, as there were no experts. When she had talked to the professor of muggle studies and spoken with Sarah about her findings, Sarah had laughed so hard she'd gotten hiccups.

Professor Dumbledore merely smiled. "It could be useful in this case. I do believe every minute they are stuck in Severus' class they get closer to another detention, so perhaps time is of the essence?" He prodded gently.

Alanna's confused look didn't leave her face, but she turned and left the infirmary anyway. When she returned ten minutes later, it was with a worried Hermione and two broadly grinning boys in tow. "That was bloody brilliant!" Ron said loudly. "The way you tore into Snape like that, incredible!"

Alanna's face was red. She turned to Dumbledore. "He questioned why they were _all_ needed in the infirmary; none of them are injured. I kindly dissuaded him of his questions." When his eyebrows raised she added, "With my tongue! I didn't hit him, I yelled at him."

The boys' grins left their faces as they saw Sarah lying on the bed, face pale except for two red patches on her cheeks, forehead beaded with sweat. Her teeth gnashed; her nightmares had returned. She twisted among the bed sheets, and her washcloth fell off of her face.

They moved to her side, concerned. Dumbledore chose this time to explain. "Miss Granger, Mr Potter, she has the flu. Did Miss Granger or Professor Trebond explain to you about what our mutual-" he coughed slightly, "_friend_ has done to Sarah?"

Harry and Ron nodded, even though Ron wasn't being addressed. Dumbledore continued. "It occurs to me that if magical remedies won't work, perhaps muggle remedies might. How is it that a muggle defeats the flu?"

Hermione's face lit up. "We need antibiotics!"

Ron looked confused. "Anti-whatsits?"

Harry explained. "They're like a potion, but not magical. They help someone get over a cold or a flu quicker. Professor Dumbledore, where will we get them from?"

Hermione answered for him. "London. We need to go to a pharmacy and pick some up. I-" Disappointment flashed across her face. "Does anyone have any muggle money?"

Harry's face fell too, followed by Ron and Alanna's. Dumbledore, however, pulled a fifty pound bill out of the folds of his robe and passed it to Harry. "I believe this will suffice." Pulling out a lolly wrapper from another fold, he held up a hand to forestall questions about where he got the muggle money. Pointing his wand at the lolly wrapper he said, "_Portus_. This will take you to Kings Cross Station. You'll have two hours to find a pharmacy. After that the portkey will activate, so it is important you have a hold of the wrapper, and try to be _discreet_. You should hurry and get changed, it will activate in half an hour, you'll need to be outside by then."

The boys turned to run off; Hermione yanked them back with that too-patient look on her face. "Accio muggle clothes! Accio Ron's muggle clothes! Accio Harry's muggle clothes!"

The garments came flying into the room at breakneck speeds; Dumbledore watched, amused, as Ron scowled. "I didn't want this jacket-"

Hermione cut him off. "It's not as though you're going to see anyone you know there, _Ronald._ Stop complaining."

Harry, meanwhile, was pulling his clothes on as quickly as he could manage it. When they were clothed they took the portkey from Dumbledore and ran outside. Alanna settled by Sarah's bedside, to wait for the muggle medicine and watch over her charge.

PAGE BREAK!!!

Harry, Ron and Hermione appeared in the middle of a bustling Kings Cross Station. Ron was talking loudly. "-don't get why Dumbledore asked me to come. Don't get me wrong, I'm glad he did-"

Hermione shushed him. Turning to Harry she asked, "Do you know where a pharmacy is?"

He shook his head. "I was hoping you did."

Ron piped up helpfully, "I don't either."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "I knew you wouldn't, Ron. You never visit muggle London. Alright. Let's head this way-" She pointed left, down the road. "And hope that we run into one."

They set out down the road and soon realised they were headed in the wrong direction; the area turned into a residential area not three blocks later. They wasted half an hour before they returned to their starting point. When they had returned to King's Cross station they ventured past it, moving down the right of the road.

They walked for thirty more minutes before getting the smart idea to ask someone for directions. Harry went to a man walking past. Politely, he asked, "Excuse me sir, could you tell me where the nearest pharmacy is?" 

The man shoved past Harry. "Nick off, you little punk. Shouldn't you be in school?" Without waiting for a reply he stomped off, leaving a bewildered Harry, an angry Ron and an exasperated Hermione.

"That's not how you do it, Harry! Here, let me." She walked up to a woman who was walking in the same direction as the previous man. She put a charming smile on her face and asked sweetly, "Excuse me miss, would you be able to tell me where the nearest pharmacy is?"

The lady smiled at the respectful young girl and nodded. "You head down to Kings Cross Station and take the road perpendicular to the railway; after that it's about the distance between the pharmacy and the station as it is between the station and here. It's not very close… but it's the closest one there is."

Hermione thanked the lady and turned to the boys, a triumphant look on her face. Ron's mouth hung open. "What did you do that Harry didn't?"

"People like teenage girls better than they like teenage boys. Now, we need to hurry, we'll be pushing the two hour dead line."

They had ten minutes by the time they made it to the pharmacy. It should have been plenty of time. When they reached the wall full of different cold and flu medications, Harry and Hermione pulled up short. "Which one?" Harry panted, slightly out of breath from the rush.

Hermione looked bewildered. "I don't know… let's see. She has a fever, a sore throat, a headache, a cough…" Picking up an orange packet, she read the label. "Not this one." She picked up another and made a noise of triumph.

They hurried to the counter; there was only five minutes left. The disinterested cashier said monotonously, "Identification please."

Harry and Hermione exchanged glances. "Why do we need ID?"

The cashier looked up. "We need ID to sell you this cough medicine."

"Why?" Harry's voice was sharp. They _really_ didn't have time to argue.

The cashier was getting impatient. "Because you can make crystal meth from some kinds of cough medicine. Do you have ID or not?"

Harry and Hermione turned away from the counter, frustrated. "Now what?"

Hermione looked helpless. "I don't know!"

Two minutes.

Harry stood, restless and unsure.

PAGE BREAK!!!

Alanna mopped Sarah's brow once again, watching her student with a worried gaze. It was unusual for anyone to get so sick so quickly. _I'll bet Mithros helped it along when he saw she was getting sick._ She banished the thought almost as quickly as it came. She couldn't afford to think like that about a god; it would get her the same treatment.

Sarah moaned lowly, deep in her throat; her eyes squeezed tight and she moaned again. Alanna frowned and tightened the grip on her charge's hand. Madam Pomfrey bustled around her, replacing the pot of tea at Sarah's bedside and placing a bottle of butterbeer next to it. Alanna nodded her thanks to the matron; she had acquired a taste for the beverage during her time there. Pomfrey left without a word.

After taking a swig of the butterbeer Alanna shook Sarah's shoulder lightly. Sarah's eyes fluttered, she moaned as a hand flew up to her head. She rolled over onto her side and curled up into a ball, eyes squeezed tightly shut. They flew open as quickly as they had closed. "I think I'm going to be sick." She whispered. Alanna barely managed to get out of the way before Sarah threw up all over the floor.

Madam Pomfrey bustled over, her wand at the ready. Muttering a quick, _scourgify_, the floor was made spotless again. Muttering another spell, she conjured a glass of water and helped Sarah to drink while Alanna supported the girl on the other side. When the glass was finished Sarah sat back against the headrest, her eyes closed. "I hate being sick."

The concern in Alanna's voice made Sarah open her eyes. "I've never seen someone get sick so quickly."

Sarah grinned weakly. "You should know by now I never do anything by halves. I don't get sick often, but when I do I get _sick._" Even the small effort of saying that was too much for Sarah, she coughed uncontrollably. The fit left her shaking, and Alanna forced some tea down her throat. After that she ordered Sarah to get some sleep, to which the younger woman gladly obliged.

Alanna didn't leave Sarah's bedside as the minutes ticked on and the two hour deadline drew closer than ever.

PAGE BREAK!!!

One minute thirty seconds was all the time remaining before the portkey activated and Harry had an idea. He turned to the cashier. "Is there any I can get _without_ ID?"

The clerk nodded and pulled a box off the shelf. "That'll be thirteen fifty."

Harry passed the fifty pound note to the apathetic man and followed Hermione and Ron out of the pharmacy at a quick jog. "Keep the change!" He tossed over his shoulder. The cashier stared after them.

They made it to the alleyway behind the pharmacist and Harry fished around in his pocket for the candy wrapper. Hermione grew impatient. "Hurry Harry! We only have a few seconds left!"

He tried his other pocket. "Got it! Quick, here!" They all grabbed ahold of the wrapper just seconds before the familiar tugging sensation appeared behind their navels. The portkey whisked them away as a stray alley cat stared.

PAGE BREAK!!!

Meanwhile, in the pharmacy, the register sprung open due to the pressure of a rubber chicken that had suddenly appeared in the place of fifty pound note. Finally an expression appeared on the clerk's face: shocked confusion. On the foot of the chicken were the words 'Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes.'

PAGE BREAK!!!

Harry, Hermione and Ron landed in a heap on the grass before the steps to the castle. They picked themselves up slowly; Harry still clutched the box of tablets in his left hand. They made their way hastily to the infirmary, ignoring the students staring at them as they flounced their way through the corridors in their casual dress. By now it was lunchtime; every student was out of class.

Draco Malfoy and his cronies intercepted them before they made it to the infirmary. Hermione scowled; Harry's eyes narrowed. "Out of the way, Malfoy."

He looked them up and down, a sneer on his face. "Showing our true colours are we Potty? Gone completely muggle?"

Harry moved to push past him; Crabbe shoved him back in place. Harry balled his hands in a fist, but Hermione stopped him from moving to fight back. Instead she spoke softly to Malfoy; using her best impression of Sarah when she was angry. "Do you remember what Professor Trebond told us after Defence Without a Wand?"

He looked at her, contempt evident in his face. "So?"

Her eyes hardened. "I've been having private lessons." She held up her hands, concentrating and hoping they wouldn't notice the sweat on her brow. Flames shot up from her closed fists, she grinned in triumph. She had never managed to completely 'flame out' both hands, the most she had managed was one. The Slytherins backed off quickly, fear evident in their eyes.

Harry and Ron stared; Hermione fixed Malfoy with a stare. "Leave us alone."

The Slytherins scurried off and they were under way again. They hadn't been moving more than a minute before they saw Snape headed towards them. Hermione swore, a colourful word that she had learned from Sarah. "You two go on ahead; I'll bet Malfoy snitched to Snape about me using magic against him."

Harry and Ron nodded, splitting off from Hermione. She continued on her path, and was soon intercepted by Snape. "Miss Granger, a little birdy informed me that you used your magic against him, and now I find you out of uniform. Are you aiming for detention?"

She tried her luck with a lie. "Was this birdy blonde Professor? Because I'm still just learning control over wandless magic; when Malfoy made me angry I couldn't control it."

He narrowed his eyes. "He told me you raised your hands against him."

Hermione simulated shock. "I didn't mean for him to take it wrongly, sir. I was merely trying to get control over my Gift; I had to see my hands properly to do so."

"Perhaps you should practice your control." His voice dripped with distaste.

She averted her eyes skilfully; this was the best performance she had managed against a teacher, ever. "I've only been practicing for a little while sir. I'm sorry, I'll apologize to Malfoy if you'd like." _Over my dead body._ "As for my clothes… Professor Dumbledore asked me to run him an errand, and I needed a change of clothes to do so. If you want to know more… I'd ask Professor Dumbledore sir, he'd probably be able to explain it better."

Snape regarded her for a moment longer before nodded slowly. "We shall speak of this later, Granger. You had best follow Potter and Weasley; you don't want to keep the headmaster waiting."

She nodded to him and left, amazed that she had escaped unscathed. A few minutes later she entered the infirmary and moved quickly to Sarah's side. The other young woman was sleeping peacefully, and Ron and Harry were changing into their uniforms behind a closed curtain. Hermione sank gratefully into a chair beside the bed, she glanced at Alanna, nodding briefly in reply to the red head's nod.

"She'll be alright. The antibiotics were fast working; she's just sleeping it off now." Alanna answered her unspoken question. "They seem to encourage a deep sleep; her nightmares stopped after we gave her the medicine."

Hermione nodded. "The packaging said it caused drowsiness."

Sarah stirred lightly, a small moan escaping her lips. Alanna sighed. "It'll still be days before she's up and around again." She rested the wash cloth back on her charge's head; the medicine hadn't completely erased the fever yet.

Sarah rolled over, hugging the blanket to her chest. Alanna rolled her eyes and picked up the discarded wash cloth. "You know, when she's awake she can be nice, considerate, she'll go out of her way to make life easier for people; well the ones she likes anyway. But when she's asleep she's constantly kicking her blankets off, knocking things over…"

Hermione grinned, but her face turned serious. "Um… Professor… Sarah told me you'd be more comfortable if I called you Alanna… Would you mind? I mean I won't if-"

The red head cut her off with a smirk. "She's right, call me Alanna. If I had my way everyone would, but you couldn't imagine my excitement when Dumbledore said I was to be a _professor._" The sarcasm in her voice was palpable, but her face turned to shock when she heard the voice behind her.

"My dear, it's a necessary step to make sure the students respect you." Dumbledore had a twinkle in his eyes, and Alanna turned beet red.

Hermione giggled uncontrollably, causing Ron and Harry to poke their heads out from behind the curtain. "What? What's so funny?"

Hermione just shook her head, amusement still evident on her face. Alanna swore. "You're quieter than a Shang, you know that?"

Instead of answering he gestured to Sarah. "I take it appropriate medicine was found?"

Hermione nodded. "Yes Professor. It was a close call though; we barely made it out of the pharmacy with a minute to spare."

He nodded and turned back to Alanna. "Will there be classes today?"

Alanna frowned. "What is it- Thursday? Sixth years today… No, I need Sarah's help with them. We'll have to cancel." She sighed. "That boy, Neville, will be so disappointed…"

PAGE BREAK!!!

The next few days were filled with visits from friends and plenty of sleep for Sarah. She munched on chocolate frogs happily when Harry dropped by; she thanked Hermione for bringing her homework- completed- around. She sat through two thrashings at wizard's chess with Ron, after that she used the excuse that she was 'too tired' to get out of further beatings.

When he left Neville walked hesitantly into the room. Madam Pomfrey glared at him; she wanted peace and quiet for her patient. Neville didn't notice. Sarah grinned brightly at the lanky boy as he sat down. "How are you Neville? Sorry about the lesson- Professor Trebond didn't want to have to deal with Malfoy without me there to beat some sense into him."

He smiled. "It wasn't a bother. I've been doing those exercises you showed me in my spare time, instead."

"Really, which ones?" Sarah rested onto the back of the headrest as she asked the question; she tired quickly.

"All of them." His face turned eager. "Look, I can control fire now!" He concentrated on his fingertips; they blazed lightly in orange.

Sarah clapped loudly, laughing. "Good job Neville! Soon you'll be as good as me!"

He blushed and the fire danced erratically. His eyes widened in shock as he lost control of the spell; the flame blazed. Sarah lunged forward, wincing at the sudden movement, and closed a hand shielded with crimson magic around his own, smothering the flame.

Neville shifted his eyes downward, ashamed. "Hey now." Sarah's voice was full of encouragement. "You're doing well. Stop comparing yourself to the other students; you had to learn a spell to make your magic visible first! That's a spell more than Hermione or Malfoy… and he doesn't have a semblance of control that you do. Remember when he almost burnt his eye brows off? And he walked around for two days with only half of his 'brows, cause Madam Pomfrey wouldn't fix it?"

They were both laughing by now; for Sarah it quickly turned into a hacking cough. Alanna, who was just walking through the door, crossed quickly to Sarah's bed. "That's enough visits for the day, Neville you probably have some homework?" She raised an eyebrow at the younger boy, he nodded and turned to flee. Alanna faced Sarah again. "And a posset of tea for you-"

She was cut off by what sounded like an explosion. Sarah and Alanna shared a glance; Neville was wide eyed with fear. "What was that?" His voice trembled.

"An explosion." Sarah's eyes narrowed…

TBC…


	6. Chapter 5

Chapter Five:

_"An explosion."__ Sarah's eyes narrowed…_

Sarah swung her legs over the side of the bed, a determined look on her face. Alanna read her like a book and was already shaking her head. "No. You're too weak to go off investigating the source of the explosion."

Sarah stood shakily and squared her shoulders. "Alanna, you know you can't stop me from investigating." The red head opened her mouth to argue, but closed it again, recognizing the futility. Neville looked confused at Sarah calling her teacher by her first name.

The Lioness sighed gustily. "Alright, come on. Neville, stay here."

The dark haired boy started. "But-"

Sarah shook her head. "No. Stay put, it's safest. I'm sure it was just a first year stuffing up a charm in the hallway, but I want to make sure of that before I go back to sleep. Do as I say or no extra lessons."

Without waiting for a reply the two women stalked out of the infirmary, serious looks set on their face. They crept quietly down the corridor, following the smoke that was filtering towards them. They found their way to the entrance hall, not noticing their quiet shadow as Neville slipped along the corridor quietly behind them.

When they reached the entrance what they saw shocked them. At least twenty Death Eaters were heading towards the stair case that would lead them to the dining hall. A quick look at her watch told Sarah it was lunch time. Her eyes met with Alanna's and in a flash they knew what they needed to do.

Letting out loud war cries the duo leapt out in front of the Death Eaters. "You'll go no further." Alanna's voice was dangerously low.

A tall man at the front of the pack chuckled. "Two wandless _women_ and a hapless twat plan to stand against all of us?" Sarah's head whipped towards the corridor they had entered from. There stood Neville, his hand halfway to his pocket to draw his wand. Five Death Eaters had their wands trained on him. She swore.

One of the Death Eaters gestured for Neville to join them on the stair case. He complied, fear evident on his face. The tall Death Eater at the front of the pack sneered at him. "Longbottom, I recall?"

Neville's face held an expression Sarah had never seen on him before; hatred. "Malfoy." His voice dripped ice.

Sarah held out a hand to Neville, even as Alanna held out a hand to her. Neville took it, although confusion showed on his face. Malfoy spoke once again. "And now it is time for you to die. _Avada__ Kadavra!_" His wand flashed green; a pulse of light travelled towards them.

Multiple cries of _Avada__ Kadavra_ were heard, but none of the attacks hit. They were all absorbed by the shield of purple and crimson patches that surrounded the trio. The Death Eaters didn't give up, however, they continued to fire curses at them, even as their curses were absorbed by the shield.

Sarah gritted her teeth; she was in no way ready for a large working like this, not so soon after getting out of bed. She cast a glance at Neville. "Don't just stand there! Crash course; protective shields. Pull your magic out and spread it out like a blanket around you to keep everything else away. Do it now; we won't last much longer without more strength!"

He recovered from his shock and nodded hesitantly. Closing his eyes in concentration, he jumped when a loud crash sounded from above them and multiple teachers swooped past them, coming to the rescue and firing curses at the Death Eaters. The odds were still against them; there were only about fifteen teachers on their side, and not all of them seasoned fighters.

Sarah and Alanna let the shield go, opting for a more direct method of dealing with the Death Eaters; physically. Alanna threw fire at a Death Eater that tried to sneak up behind Professor McGonagall, and Sarah broke the wand- and arm attached- of one that tried to use the killing curse on Alanna. He screamed as she swept his feet out from beneath him, bringing him crashing down onto the flagstones and knocking him unconscious in one fell swoop.

She turned to find another enemy, and spotted a Death Eater advancing on Neville as he held his wand before him, shaking with fear, but a determined look on his face. Neville's cry rang out, "Stupefy!"

The Death Eater fell to the ground, unconscious. Sarah pulled out her own wand; the world was spinning slightly from the exertion of fighting, and she thought her fever might have returned.

"Stupefy! Petrificus Totalus!" She fired two curses at the Death Eaters that advanced upon her; they used shielding spells to block the attacks. Sarah pulled a little more of her Gift out of her core, noticing she was running dangerously low on energy. Erecting a crimson barrier between them and the two Death Eaters, she didn't notice one sneak around the barrier on the far side of the stairs and take careful aim at Neville. She did, however, hear him as he yelled, "Avada Kadavra!"

Sarah's head whipped around; there was no time to set a shield in place. Doing the only thing she could think of she tackled Neville to the ground, taking the green blast of energy in the shoulder. The force of the attack whipped her around; she landed flat on her face on the flagstones.

The world ran in slow motion; Alanna saw what had happened from across the entrance, she had watched helplessly, unable to get there in time to help. Now she fought her way to the offending Death Eater, and magic danced around her hands as she sent a blast of energy at him; incinerating him in seconds.

The professors fought harder; gaining the upper hand. The Death Eaters sensed this and turned tail, leaving their fallen comrades in the hands of Dumbledore. A total of five got away. Alanna moved to Sarah's side, gently turning her charge over. A pale face met her; Alanna's breath hitched in her throat and her eyes burned.

A voice sounded behind her. "I am so sorry, Alanna." Minerva McGonagall had been partial to Sarah, even if she had never been a good transfigurations student. Patting the red head's shoulder comfortingly, she moved away and to the side, giving her space.

Alanna felt the presence of Dumbledore behind her, and she could see Neville shaking as he knelt beside the body of his friend. Her eyes never left the face of her student, who was lying pale, surrounded by debris in the entrance hall. _I can't believe it… She wasn't supposed to die like this…_ A darker part of her mind sounded cynically, _How__ was she supposed to die? It's not as though she lead an easy life._

Her vision blurred, and she scrubbed at her face with the back of her hand angrily. Neville was clutching Sarah's hand. A noise sounded at the top of the steps. Harry, Ron and Hermione raced towards them, wands in their hands. Their steps faltered as they took in the sight. "Headmaster, I tried to stop them-" Snape cut off as he saw the scene before him.

Hermione dropped to her knees in front of Sarah, mouth hanging open in horror. "Oh, no…"

Harry and Ron knelt beside her, staring at the motionless girl as they laid a hand on each of Hermione's shoulders. Hermione cried unbidden; the boy's eyes shined with unshed tears. Alanna closed her eyes against the sight, but the image of Sarah lying there was burnt into her retina. Her eyes flew open as she heard a moan.

Everyone was staring as Sarah's face screwed up, wincing in pain. She moaned again, and her face softened. Alanna gasped. _She's alive!_ Part of her rejoiced. The other part wondered how it was possible, and what Mithros had told them came flying back. _Foreign magics don't affect her as easily… the spell didn't kill her, it just knocked her out…_

Alanna grinned despite herself; she levered the bundle that was her student into her arms, painfully aware of how light she was, and made her way to the infirmary; followed closely by Neville, Harry, Ron, Hermione and Dumbledore.

PAGE BREAK!!!

Alanna watched her charge closely, looking for any signs of stirring. She had been unconscious for almost two weeks now, and both the Lioness and Madam Pomfrey were near breaking point. The same quality that allowed Sarah to survive the killing curse also prevented the two experienced healers from doing anything to help her.

Defence Without a Wand lessons had been called off until further notice; Alanna spent her days waiting for Sarah to wake up, and not knowing if she ever would. It was always hard to come close to losing a friend; and Alanna had lost plenty. But sitting there helpless was taking its toll on the fiery red head, and anyone fool enough to try a conversation with her.

That was the situation Harry, Ron and Hermione found themselves in that morning. Hermione stuck her head tentatively around the curtain. "Um… Profess- I mean Alanna- is there any change?"

"No." Her answer was short, sharp and to the point.

Hermione winced. She knew that if she pressed she'd get a tongue lashing; it had happened every day for the past two weeks or so. But if she didn't she'd feel negligent in her duty to report to the rest of the Gryffindors' Sarah's progress. Harry and Ron were there for support- they both knew what a temper Alanna had.

Hermione took a deep breath. "Do you, um, mind if I sit with her for a little while?"

To her surprise the red head nodded. "Maybe your presence will do what mine can't. Take a seat; I need to speak to Professor Dumbledore."

The trio exchanged glances and sat down. They had been expecting her to cut loose and relieve some of her stress; instead she just looked weary and tired. When Alanna had left Hermione whispered in a low voice, "That was weird…"

She held Sarah's hand loosely in her own until Alanna returned and the bell rang the end of the lunch break. As Alanna was ushering them back to class a rasping voice said, "No… Let them stay…"

They all whipped around, surprise on their faces even as Alanna hauled Sarah into a sitting position, forcing water down her throat with a command. "Drink."

Sarah gulped the glassful down and waited patiently as Alanna poured her another. When she had finished that one she sighed and leaned back against the headboard. She tried to grin, but only managed a wobbly grimace. "I really need to get out of here; I'm beginning to forget what the dorms look like…"

Everyone stared. Sarah put up with it- for a whole of two seconds. "What? What's the matter now?"

They all shared a glance. "Don't you remember? You were hit with the killing curse…"

Sarah blinked. "Right… so?"

Hermione spoke up. "So no one is able to survive the killing curse…"

Sarah rolled her eyes. "What, so I can't survive something as an adult that Harry survived as a baby?"

Hermione was insistant. "That was different; his mother's lov-"

Sarah covered her ears with her hands. "La la la la la la, not listening because if I do my head will explode! Come on, 'Mione. I just woke up just _then_. No need for magical theory, thank you."

Alanna grinned. "Glad to see you're feeling better now. You gave us quite a scare."

"No I didn't. That Death Eater gave you a scare. I hope someone told him how rude it was to try to kill someone in their own home…" Sarah glanced at Alanna.

The red head nodded. "He got the message loud and clear."

Sarah sighed and let her eyes flutter closed. She didn't open them as she heard two sets of feet approaching her bed. She heard Dumbledore's voice as he spoke to the trio of students. "Mr Potter, Mr Weasley, Miss Granger, perhaps you should go back to class… Minister Fudge and I require a word with Sarah. Alanna, would you be so kind as to give us some privacy?"

Sarah opened her eyes slowly, sighing. She glanced at Alanna and gave a slight nod. The red head stood and stretched languidly before walking a little way from the bed. Sarah smiled warmly at Dumbledore before glaring at Fudge. Harry had told her about him, and she thought the Minister was a perfect politician; sneaky, conniving and treacherous.

Fudge was taken aback by her expression but Dumbledore smiled lightly. "How are you feeling, Sarah?"

She shrugged. "Not too bad, considering I just woke up in the infirmary, Professor."

He nodded. "This is the Minister of Magic, Cornelius Fudge. Can you tell us what happened? How did you survive the killing curse?"

Sarah opened her mouth to speak and frowned. Dumbledore should have known; Alanna had briefed him on what Mithros had done. She met his gaze squarely and saw a sliver of- _something_ in there. _He doesn't want me to tell Fudge what happened…_ She realised. _Harry hinted that there was more to Dumbledore than met the eye…_

"The killing curse, sir?" Sarah made her eyes as wide as saucers. "The last thing I remember clearly is hearing the explosion in the entrance hall… after that I _think _I remember walking towards the entrance, but then it gets fuzzy… I was hit with the killing curse? Then how am I still alive?"

Fudge's sour face didn't soften as he said, "We were hoping you could tell us. Professor Dumbledore tells us you're quite the prodigy when it comes to wandless magic. Maybe that helped you survive?"

Sarah forced a frown onto her face; she let her eyes cloud over as though considering the possibility. "I don't see how sir, I don't know any spells strong enough to save someone from the killing curse."

He looked dissatisfied with her answer. "Are you sure? Perhaps we should ask your teacher. Professor Trebond?" Alanna strolled over, having listened to the conversation, ready to lie in the face of the Minister. She had her own innocent expression on standby; the one she saved for truly outrageous lies.

"What can I do for you, Minister?" Her purple eyes gave nothing away.

"Do you know of any spell or any magic that you and your student are fluent in that may have saved her from the killing curse?"

Alanna frowned. "Your guess is as good as mine, Minister Fudge. I'm just grateful she survived… when I saw her hit by the curse I thought the worst had happened."

Fudge was getting agitated. "You can't think of anything?"

Alanna shook her head. "I've been over it time and time again in the last two weeks. I have no explanation for her surviving."

He sighed. "Alright. I was hoping to develop a defence against it… but there's nothing that can be done for that now. I'm just happy to meet someone who survived the killing curse. Other than Harry, that is." He held out a hand for Sarah to shake.

She stared at it for a moment, thinking _Do__ I have to shake it?_ Before taking the man's hand in her own and giving it a firm pump. Dumbledore looked to the Minister. "Cornelius, would you give us a moment. I'd like to speak to Miss Gibson and Professor Trebond for a moment."

The minister nodded. "Certainly. Professor, it was nice meeting you. Miss Gibson, you too." As he walked away Sarah made a face.

"Is he always so slimy?" She muttered to Dumbledore.

He smiled. "I'm glad you are feeling better, Sarah. Yes I'm afraid he is, and thankyou for hiding the truth. I had hoped you would understand my expression…"

She nodded. "You know, all this might be easier if you told me what was going on, what you're doing behind the Ministry's back…"

He shook his head. "Not here and not now. When you are recovered I'll introduce you to my… associates."

Sarah nodded, satisfied. Then she asked, "So, what's for lunch?" Alanna groaned.

PAGE BREAK!!!

It took another three weeks before Sarah was fit for classes; two of which were spent in the infirmary, sleeping for the majority of the time. The other one was spent in the Gryffindor common room and her own dorm; Dumbledore had banned her from participating in- or running- any classes until she was back at one hundred percent. Now Sarah found herself standing in front of the sixth years for their Defence Without a Wand class, watching with pride as Hermione, Ron, Harry and even Neville performed near flawless punches. The Slytherins; who had decided to stick it out to annoy Sarah and Alanna, weren't doing near so well.

The younger teacher narrowed her eyes. "Malfoy!" She barked. "You need to follow through; your punches are too sloppy!"

He glared at her and threw punches that could barely be described as 'crap'. She stalked over to him, holding a hand up to catch is punches where they should have been falling. His fell ten centimetres lower. "Into the hand, Malfoy."

He straightened, bringing his feet together, abandoning his fighting stance. When he stood tall he loomed a good four inches above her; Sarah refused to be intimidated. "Ever since someone survived the killing curse they think they're all that, don't they?"

Sarah rolled her eyes. "Are you joking? Do you _really_ think you can challenge me?"

His face contorted in concentration. Holding up his hand, Sarah noticed there was a _small_ spark of greyish fire contained in the palm of his hand. She choked back a laugh. "Really? You can do fire now? Alanna, why did you teach the little psycho how to play with fire? Seriously?"

The red head nodded apologetically. "Sorry, set curriculum that we made up, remember? We have to teach them all control, and the easiest way to do that is with fire."

Sarah sighed loudly. "Alright. You want at me, have at me then. If you're just posing, get out of the class. You're too disruptive and you're obviously trained enough so you don't blow up half the school if you get angry. If you beat me, and hey, you might- I'm still light on the pins from my weeks in bed- then I'll let the issue go and you can even teach the class if you'd like."

His pale eyebrows shot up high on his forehead; his icy blue eyes betrayed the shock he tried to hide. Instead he put a cocky grin on his face. "Alright then. Me and you. No wands, no teachers."

Sarah glanced at Alanna; the red head had an amused look on her face. Sarah grinned in reply. She forced her underused body into a few more complex stretches; ones that would hurt less experienced fighters if they tried them. When she was limber she faced Malfoy, who had managed to nurse his fireball into a slightly larger one. Sarah scoffed. "You intend to beat me with that puny thing, or are you just wasting your Gift?"

Alanna cleared her throat. "Now now, Sarah. You know how I feel about insulting your opponent. It's a complete waste of time."

Sarah shrugged. "Yeah, but it's fun."

The other students formed a rather large circle around them, to watch the upcoming thrashing. Sarah sunk into her strongest fighting stance; she could afford to take no chances. She hadn't told anyone, but she still experienced dizzy spells several times during the day.

Malfoy tried to mirror her stance, and only managed to fall into a stiff parody of the Crouching Dragon form that Wildcat had taught her. She rolled her eyes, and gestured one handed, beckoning for him to make the first move. He started with a sloppy kick to the back of her legs; she leapt above it before bringing her foot up to slam solidly into his chest. He staggered back before coming in with a wild swing.

Sarah danced out of the way, amusement evident on her face. He chose that moment to throw the ball of his Gift towards her. She held out a hand, and a crimson ball of fire literally _swallowed_ the grey spark. Raising an eyebrow, she coughed lightly into her hand. "You need to practice more."

His eyes narrowed in anger, he lunged in for another attack. _Time to end this…_ Sarah dodged underneath his wild swing, coming up behind him. She propelled her elbow backwards, into his spine; she heard him exhale sharply. Before he could fall to the ground she spun around, bringing her arm upwards to slam into his chest. As a result he landed flat on his back, rather than on his stomach, where he lay groaning.

Sarah straightened and turned away from him, glancing quickly at Alanna, then away, ashamed. She had abused her power, her training, and dishonoured her teachers in doing so. The other times she had held him off rather than actually attack him; this time she had attacked offensively, and risked hurting the prat.

She shook her head and walked away, ignoring Alanna as she called after her. The older Knight didn't follow her; she still had to lead the class in meditations.

Hermione found her sitting by the lake an hour later, throwing rocks into the turquoise water and watching the ripples as they spread across the vast body of water. Hermione hung back; there was obviously something the matter, but Sarah wasn't an open book. If she approached the other girl chances are she would be turned away. She squared her shoulders; it was her duty as a friend to ask, regardless of what Sarah might say.

Before she could step closer the other girl's head turned slightly in her direction. "Come sit down, 'Mione. Plenty of room on the ground. Ask what you're going to ask, get it over with."

Sarah turned back to the lake; Hermione couldn't see her face unless she sat next to her. She made her way to the sandy bank where Sarah had made her seat. When she saw her face she gasped. There were tear tracks down her cheeks, and her eyes were red from crying.

The bushy haired girl put her arm hesitantly around Sarah's shoulder, pulling the girl into a one-armed embrace. Sarah remained stiff, but leaned on the other girl's shoulder. "Sarah, what's the matter?"

There was a shaky breath before Sarah whispered, "I'm a disgrace to my trainers."

Hermione frowned. "Why?"

"I misused my training; I shouldn't have humiliated Malfoy so badly. It wasn't my place." Sarah's eyes never left the surface of the lake, and she made no reaction when the giant squid started thrashing about. It was clear to Hermione that Sarah's mind was a mile away.

Hermione gave the other girl's shoulder a squeeze. "Malfoy deserved it. Don't beat yourself up, Alanna was really worried when you ran off."

"I- I'm not ready to face her. I don't want to see the shame on her face when I see her next. I can't handle that. I- I just can't." Sarah's voice took on a raspy quality, her voice was barely a whisper.

Hermione turned her around, forcing her to face her. She met Sarah's eyes; forcing the other girl to meet her own. "Sarah, Alanna isn't ashamed of you. She's just worried; you ran away straight after the fight; did you realise you were crying?"

Sarah broke away, hugging herself around the shoulders as she stared wide eyed at the lake; or rather, staring through it. "I can't lose Alanna's regard. She's like a mother to me. Ever since-" She choked back what she was going to say, shaking her head.

Hermione frowned in concern. "Ever since what, Sarah. What happened?"

Sarah took a deep, shuddering breath. She stood, brushing off her pants. "I don't want to talk about it." Sarah turned, ready to leave. Hermione sighed; here was the brick wall she had expected. As Sarah wandered slowly up the gentle incline towards the castle, Hermione watched, concerned.

PAGE BREAK!!!

Sarah poked at her dinner absently, ignoring the concerned glances that her trio of friends were giving her. Ten minutes into the meal she stood silently and walked out of the hall, head down, her eyes avoiding everyone else's. She didn't see Alanna stand from her seat at the head table and follow her quietly.

The red head caught up with her in the corridor and took her arm gently, steering her towards her office. Sarah didn't object, she was too emotionally drained to do anything at that moment except follow Alanna's lead.

When they were in the office and the door was closed Alanna fixed her with a purple-eyed stare. "What's the matter?" There was a quiet command in her voice; telling her to answer the question truthfully.

Sarah didn't reply; she just stared at her feet. Alanna sighed and steered her to a chair, whipping out a vial of smelling salts at the same time. Sarah threw up her hands in dismissal. "I'm not in shock, Alanna."

The red head tried a grin. "At least I got your attention. Sarah, what's wrong?"

The younger girl shook her head stubbornly. "I'm fine. Don't worry Alanna."

Alanna rolled her eyes and held up a hand, ticking off fingers as she went along. "Let's see then. First you challenge Malfoy to a fight, which, by the way, I have no problems about, then you run off, leaving me to deal with the rest of the class by myself. When I see you again, at dinner, you barely touch your food and you leave barely ten minutes in! Then when I catch up to you, you don't even notice me until I lead you in here and threaten you with smelling salts!"

Sarah opened her mouth to reply, but shut it quickly as her emotions over ran her and a tear leaked from the corner of her eyes. She turned away from Alanna, even as the shorter woman grabbed her arm. "What _is_ wrong, Sarah? We're in this together; you can talk to me…"

Sarah bit her lip to stop herself from sobbing. She lost the battle when Alanna put her arms around her, treating her like one of the older knight's own children. Sarah sobbed into her shoulder, barely managing to get "I don't want you to be ashamed of me." Out before Alanna withdrew suddenly.

"Ashamed? Why would I be ashamed?" The red head's purple eyes were sharp.

Sarah's watery eyes couldn't meet her gaze. "I- I misused my training. I shouldn't have taken advantage of my superior skills to humiliate Malfoy. It was wrong." She couldn't get anymore out over Alanna's gentle chuckling. She tugged Sarah down onto a divan in her window box, wiping the tears from her student's face.

"Sarah, Malfoy deserved to be humiliated. Hopefully he'll stop giving all of the other students a hard time for a few weeks before his ego recovers. I know how you're feeling right now. When I was just beginning my training as a page there was a boy a few years older than me, named Ralon. He pushed me, bullied me, and like a good little page I took the punishment. I didn't complain to my friends, not even when he broke my arm. Instead I spent the months after that training my hardest; I would sneak out at night time and practice wrestling with George-"

"I'll _bet_ you were practicing wrestling with George." Sarah quipped, and flinched when Alanna whacked her on the shoulder.

"Can I continue? And no, we weren't practicing that kind of wrestling then, you guttersnipe. I was like, twelve. Anyway, I practiced and practiced until one day George asked me what I was waiting for. I called Ralon out the next day, insulting him and forcing him into a fight, which I won. He left the palace the next day. I felt like throwing up afterwards. Do you know what Myles said to me?" Sarah shook her head. "Myles said that there will always be people weaker than you, and stronger than you. You'll have to fight both in your course as a knight; you can't spare a hillman just because he isn't as good with a sword as you. You did nothing wrong in calling Malfoy out this afternoon; he was challenging you as a teacher in front of your class. Were I in your place I probably would have blackened his eye or split his lip as well."

Sarah shook her head adamantly. "No, this is different. Ralon was bullying you, that's why you practiced wrestling, that's why you got better. I was already good; I'm no better than Ralon, or Malfoy."

Alanna rolled her eyes. "Do you think Malfoy is sitting in his little dungeon, wondering how _his_ victims feel? Do you think he feels guilty when he bullies the first years, or when he mouths off at Hagrid, or Harry, or Ron, or calls Hermione a mudblood? There is a difference between you and Malfoy, like there was a difference between Page Alan and Squire Ralon. We feel remorse. They don't. That's what separates us from the hillmen, the Scanrans and the raiders. We care about the lives we take; they care only for themselves."

Sarah managed a half nod, although she wasn't entirely convinced. Before they could continue on with their conversation there was a knock on the door. Curious, Alanna opened it to reveal Dumbledore standing in the threshold, hands folded, an open expression on his face.

Alanna gestured for him to enter while saying, "Professor, please, come in."

He bowed his head slightly in acknowledgement and unwrapped a lemon sweet that he fished from somewhere in his robe. Offering one to Alanna and Sarah, he asked, "Lemon drop?"

Alanna declined, but Sarah accepted. She had grown to like the old man's favourite sweet, when you got used to the sour taste anyway. The red head looked confused. "What can I do for you, Professor?"

He peered over his glasses at Sarah while she shifted uncomfortably. "I was hoping you and Sarah might accompany me in a… _professional_ capacity. I thought you might like to meet some of my associates."

TBC….

A/n. I know I know… 'would you like some candy, dear child? Yes… there's some in the basement…' Come on, Dumbledore's not like that:P And not _that_ kind of professional capacity, you sick minded individuals.


	7. Chapter 6

Chapter Six:

Sarah tumbled out of the fire place of the house at 12 Grimmauld Place, a location that Dumbledore had only then disclosed to her and Alanna. She turned as the red head tumbled from the fire place behind her, holding her stomach as she moaned. "Why does everything feel like travelling on a boat…" Sarah grinned.

Dumbledore stepped regally out of the fireplace, adjusting his robes even as Sarah glared. "How is it that you can just step out of the fireplace, but we end up flying out of it like ragdolls?"

His smile reached his eyes as he replied succinctly, "Practice."

Before the two women could respond with various sarcastic remarks a hideous screaming filled the air. Alanna and Sarah both dropped into defensive stances but relaxed as Dumbledore simply sighed. "It appears we have woken Mrs Black."

Sarah and Alanna shared confused looks. The younger woman asked, "Who's Mrs Black?"

Before Dumbledore could reply a harrowed looking middle aged man rushed past them and threw a blanket over the portrait, effectively muting the screaming. Turning to Dumbledore he said, "The blanket has a silencing charm on it, but it has to be taken off every few hours so it can be renewed."

The old man nodded and gestured to his two accomplices. "Remus, I'd like to introduce you to Sir Alanna of Trebond, Olau and Pirate's Swoop, and Sir Sarah of Greenstone."

Sarah choked on her breath at being introduced by her formal title; she gave Dumbledore a reproachful glare before stalking over to the other man with her hand outstretched. "Sarah _Gibson_, pleased to meet you, Remus…?"

"Lupin. Remus Lupin." He gave her hand a firm pump before shaking Alanna's hand. "Do you have a last name too, or are you just Sir Alanna?"

Alanna rolled her eyes. "Alanna is fine." He nodded as he led them towards the kitchens.

"Come, Molly is just finishing dinner now. Have you eaten?"

Dumbledore's eyes twinkled. "Yes, but I always save room for Molly's cooking. Sarah and Alanna lack a decent meal as well."

Sarah rolled her eyes. She decided she needed to stop being surprised by Dumbledore's observant tendencies. Alanna elbowed her lightly; she entered a room so full of delicious aromas that her mouth watered.

Remus made the introductions. "Molly, this is Sir Sarah Gibson of Greenstone and Sir Alanna of Trebond, Olau and Pirate's Swoop."

Sarah shook her hand with a grin on her face. "Drop the Lady and the 'of Greenstone' and that'll be just about right. How do you do?"

Molly returned the hand shake with a curious expression. "You wouldn't happen to be the 'awesome Professor Trebond and incredible Sarah Gibson' that I've heard so much about, would you?"

Sarah blinked, then noticed the other woman's fiery red hair. "You wouldn't happen to be Ron and Ginny Weasley's mother, would you?" At her nod she continued, suspicious. "Now which one of your children was writing that codswallop about us?"

She was interrupted by a call from the door that led outside, to the entrance way. "Mu-um, we're hungry." A voice called out.

Another, near identical voice added, "Yeah, when's dinner? You said seven-"

"O'clock, and it's seven oh five." The first voice interrupted the second. When the culprits entered the room Sarah couldn't help but grin. _They must be Ron's older brothers… Fred and George are legends around Hogwarts…_

They stopped in their tracks, looking her up and down. One of them, the one with an 'F' on his sweater, whistled lowly. "You could have told us we had such lovely company-"

The one with a 'G' on his sweater interrupted. "We would have dressed up. Here-" He pulled a flower from seemingly no where and offered it to Sarah, who was blushing at that point.

Fred, Sarah assumed, picked up where his brother left off. "A beautiful flower for a beautiful lady." Sarah reached out to take the offered red blossom when Remus laughed, amused.

"I wouldn't. Do you want 'kiss me' tattooed on your forehead for the rest of the evening? They're in the business of practical jokes; I wouldn't take anything from them, _especially candy._" Sarah nodded, aware and amused.

"You live up to your reputation, Fred, George." She addressed them with a nod.

Fred gaped. "How did you-"

"Know which one-"

"Of us-"

"Was which?" George finished the question.

Sarah smirked. "Your sweaters gave me a hint…"

Molly waved a wooden spoon at the twins, a reproachful look on her face. "Now you two, don't go trying to pull jokes on guests of Dumbledore. This is Sarah Gibson, the one you're brother has written so much about, and her teacher Professor Trebond."

Their eyebrows shot up simultaneously. "So you're Sarah-"

"The one who-"

"Humiliates Malfoy every-"

"Other day, and teaches-"

"Ronnikins to fight without-"

"A wand?" This time it was Fred to finish speaking.

Sarah narrowed her eyes. "No, I'm Sarah, the one who helps Professor Trebond to teach Ron- what did you call him? Ronnikins? Oh I bet he loves that… would you mind if I used that every now and then?"

Fred smirked. "Not at all-"

George took her hand. "My fair lady. It would be-"

"An honour if you would-"

"Annoy Ronnikins-"

"In our place."

Sarah smirked, but was interrupted by dishes whirling around the table, setting themselves for dinner. Molly gestured them to a seat, which Sarah and Alanna gladly took. With her guilt assuaded somewhat by Alanna, Sarah's appetite had returned with a vengeance, and she was certain everyone could hear her stomach growling. Molly Weasley rang a bell and was met with a chorus of 'coming!' that sounded like they were coming from an upper level.

Three more people wandered into the kitchen, only to stop short as they noticed their three guests. "Professor Dumbledore! How are you?" A man who could only be Arthur Weasley greeted them with a smile.

A woman with pink hair and a snub of a nose met Sarah and Alanna's presence with open suspicion, but that was nothing compared to the look the short man with an electric blue eye gave them. "Who are you?" He barked.

Sarah chocked on the glass of water she was taking a sip from. "Hello to you too." She muttered to Alanna as Dumbledore made the introductions.

"Alaster, Nymphadora, this is Sir Sarah Gibson of Greenstone and Sir Alanna of Trebond, Olau and Pirate's Swoop. Alanna, Sarah, this is Alaster Moody and Nymphadora Tonks."

Sarah stretched out her hand to the woman with pink hair; she greeted them now with an easy smile. "Wotcher, Sir Sarah of Greenstone. Call me Tonks; what kind of a mother calls her kid Nymphadora anyway?"

Sarah returned her smile. "Only if you call me Sarah, Nymphadora." The other woman scowled, but nodded. When Sarah turned to greet Moody he glared. "Hi. How are you?" She tried.

He didn't take her offered hand, instead turning to Dumbledore, saying, "Why are they here?"

Sarah exchanged a glance with Alanna. _He's not the best on social skills, is he?_

Dumbledore cleared his throat gingerly. "They are here to help deal with a certain problem we have. They are here to help Harry defeat Voldemort."

Everyone, baring Sarah, Alanna and Dumbledore, flinched at the name. Moody seemed unbelieving. "Them? She is barely more than a child herself, and the other one doesn't look like she could use a wand if her life depended on it!"

Sarah coughed lightly into her hand, resting the other one on Alanna's shoulder, to stop her from rising and challenging the man then and there. Sarah shook her head, _Not__ now._ The red head growled but stayed put. Instead, Sarah turned coolly to Moody. "Don't trust appearances; they are often misleading. You heard us addressed as 'Sir'. That's because we are both Knights of our realm, and mages to boot. We don't need wands to defend ourselves."

Dumbledore nodded and added, "In fact, Sarah has recently survived the killing curse…" The table fell silent and Sarah glared daggers at Dumbledore.

"You just _had_ to bring that up, didn't you? I just get over all of the stares from the other students, and you just _had_ to mention it to people who didn't already know…"

He smiled and said, "My dear, everyone has heard the rumours that another person has recently survived the killing curse; this just enabled them to put a face to the rumour."

Sarah sighed and sat back down, facing her plate but not the stares she received. She noticed two places still empty. "Who are we waiting for?" She enquired curiously.

Molly answered her. "Professor McGonagall and Professor Snape."

Sarah gaped openmouthed at Dumbledore. "_They're_ in this little band of merry men you've gathered?"

Alanna smirked; Moody scowled. Dumbledore nodded in response. "Yes, Minerva is one of my oldest friends and Severus is a valuable asset."

Sarah nodded, even as they heard a clatter from outside, in the entrance. A moment later Minerva McGonagall and Severus Snape walked into the kitchen. The prim older woman apologised, "Sorry we're late, there was a fight between Gryffindor and Slytherin students in the entrance hall."

Sarah's ears perked up. "Really, who? And what kind of fight, wands, fists…" She trailed off as Snape glared at her. _Must've been good._ She thought with grim satisfaction.

McGonagall looked amused. "I might as well tell you, you'll find out the minute you get back anyway. Harry Potter, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger were attacked by Malfoy and his friends-"

"So they _say_." Severus interrupted firmly.

McGonagall ignored him and continued. "With wands. The Gryffindor students defended themselves with only their fists. It seems that your lessons are working well, Sarah."

"I knew they had it in them!" Sarah crowed, even as Molly glowered.

Fred and George joined in Sarah's grin as they exclaimed, in unison, "Ronnikins won a fight!"

Alanna looked amused, but throughout the rejoicing Molly Weasley was becoming more and more agitated. Eventually she snapped, "Fred, George, be quiet. Professor, how many points were taken? And were any detentions given? And were the other boys injured?" Her voice held the dangerous quality of a mother who knew harsh discipline.

Snape answered, satisfaction evident in his voice. "Each of them received twenty points off for brawling like muggles in the corridors." Sarah narrowed her eyes at his choice of words, but kept quiet. "They also received two detentions each, to be served cleaning cauldrons in the dungeons this Hogsmeade weekend. No one was injured worse than a blackened eye."

"So they get detention to stop themselves being hexed? What did the Slytherins get, a pat on the back for being good little Death Eaters?" Sarah snapped.

Snape's eyes narrowed. "They received the same punishment, and I won't accept rudeness from a student!"

"We aren't at school, _Professor_." Sarcasm dripped from her words.

"I will not accept your insolence!" He snapped.

She jabbed a finger into his chest. "Deal with it! You do nothing but ride me and the other Gryffindors; we do nothing wrong! You treat your little Slytherins like the sun shines from their-"

Dumbledore cleared his throat, when Sarah looked at him his eyes were sharp. "What?" She asked. "This is the only opportunity I get to tell the prat how I feel without him giving me detentions. The punishment given to Harry, Ron and Hermione was completely unreasonable; they were only defending themselves so they weren't hexed!"

She turned to Molly Weasley and said, in defence of her son, "To be perfectly honest, Mrs Weasley, Ron could have, and probably _should have_ broken Malfoy's arm with what I've taught him. The fact that they only blackened an eye or split a lip shows incredible restraint. Don't punish him for something that is not his fault."

Dumbledore looked on, interested. Sarah turned to him. "Perhaps it is not the student that should be punished for their teacher's shortcomings- maybe it should be me to serve their detentions?"

He smiled, amused, but shook his head. "No, the punishment is fair as far as Mr Potter, Mr Weasley and Miss Granger are concerned. _But_-" He added, looking to Snape, "It is not fair to make them sit the punishment on a Hogsmeade weekend when they can sit it tomorrow evening instead. Two consecutive hours of punishment must surely be worse than a split sentence?"

He looked about ready to refuse, but nodded his head sullenly. "Yes headmaster."

Dumbledore continued. "And as for Mr's Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle, I believe that an additional twenty points, each, should be taken for instituting the fight, don't you agree?"

Severus started angrily, "Headmaster, that is completely-"

He was cut off by a shake of the head from Dumbledore. "Now, shall we eat?"

Sarah dug in hungrily, aware that both Snape and Moody watched her throughout the dinner, the former with contempt, the latter with suspicion. When she was finished the roast chicken, mashed potatoes and steamed vegetables, she turned to Mrs Weasley and said, "That was thoroughly enjoyable. Your children never told me what a great cook you were, but Harry led on that your cooking was not something to be missed."

She beamed in response to Sarah's compliment. When Sarah glanced around the table, she did a double take as her gaze passed Tonks. "Hang on… wasn't your hair pink earlier?"

The woman nodded her now purple head. "Yeah, I'm a metamorphagus. I can change almost everything about myself."

Sarah nodded, although she was still confused. She resolved to research the term when she got back to Hogwarts. When everyone else had finished their dinner, Dumbledore cleared his throat and gestured with an arm. "Sarah, Alanna, welcome to the Order of the Phoenix."

Sarah shared a glance with Alanna. "Ahuh… do you have club badges too? Or blazers?" Everyone, Alanna included, seemed confused by her quip. She groaned and buried her face in her hands. "Argh, I'm surrounded by people who don't understand my sense of humour! It's like being in Tortall all over again!"

Moody snapped. "This isn't a moment to be making jokes. You've been trusted with valuable information, if it were to fall into Voldemort's hands it could prove the death of all of us!"

Sarah nodded. "Well it can't fall into Voldy's hands now can it?" Alanna snorted on her pumpkin juice at Sarah's name for him, even as some of the others winced.

Moody turned to Dumbledore again. "Albus, you still haven't explained why they are here. A couple of Knights won't stand a chance against Voldemort-"

Dumbledore interrupted with a raised hand. "A couple of Knights, no. A couple of mages, probably not either. But Sarah is the chosen Messenger for the Gods." Sarah winced as once again all eyes turned to her.

Remus looked confused. "But the Gods are a myth told to children-"

"Ah!" Sarah interrupted. "Don't say that. Mithros will probably strike you down where you sit; he's incredibly vain. You'll hurt his feelings." The staring intensified. Sarah rolled her eyes, even as Alanna snickered beside her. "Stop staring, really. I am _so_ sick of it."

One by one their gazes all turned back to Dumbledore. McGonagall looked mildly amused at the situation; Snape just looked bored. Dumbledore continued. "Sarah has been sent by Mithros to help Harry defeat Voldemort. She has already survived the killing curse once."

Moody still seemed sceptical, and Sarah threw up her hands in annoyance. "Hey, look. If I were going to kill anyone, I really would have by now. I'm not entirely patient; if my quarry is in sight then I'll hunt it down then and there."

He fixed her with his electric blue eye. "And what is your quarry?"

She met his gaze evenly, although his eye somewhat perturbed her. "Voldemort."

He narrowed his eyes. "I would like a demonstration of your apparent skills." Without further word he pulled out his wand and pointed it straight at Sarah.

She was halfway to standing when Dumbledore's voice cut through the tension like a knife. "That is quite enough, Alaster."

Sarah settled back down into her seat. "If you want a demonstration, I'm more than happy to oblige." She murmured in a low voice.

He glared. "How do you intend to demonstrate your abilities?"

Alanna coughed lightly into her hand, trying to get Sarah's attention. Sarah ignored her, too busy with her staring contest with the one eyed auror. Once again it was Dumbledore who broke the silence. "Perhaps, the Room of Requirement? This weekend. You _have_ been using it to train, have you not, Sarah?"

She glanced at him. "This weekend?" She sighed, disappointed. "Fine… I _had _wanted to go on the first Hogsmeade weekend, but if I have to spend it showing Mr I-need-to-loosen-up that I have the skills required for this mission, I guess I'll have to."

This was too much for Moody. "If you are who you say you are then you are here to protect Harry, not visit Hogsmeade!"

"And where do you think Harry will be this weekend?" She shot back. He glared, but offered no further comment.

When the matter was settled Molly set about cleaning up the dishes, leaving Fred and George to drag Sarah away. "We want to-"

"Get to know-"

"Ronnikins friend-"

"A little better." Fred completed the disjointed sentence while dragging her out of the kitchen. Sarah sent pleading glances at Alann, but the red head ignored them with a smirk. Sarah found herself being dragged upstairs by two of the greatest legends at Hogwarts.

PAGE BREAK!!!

Sarah walked through the door, laughing. "Poor Ron, you two need to leave him alone…" She grinned at Fred and George, who were bowing unashamedly.

Mrs Weasley glared. "Are you two telling her of the time you tricked Ron into eating that purple colouring agent, and it turned his face, hair and hands purple?"

Alanna choked on her glass of butterbeer, an amused look on her face. Sarah stared in open eyed mirth. "No, but that's a good one too. I'll have to bring that one up when we get back to Hogwarts too."

The older woman groaned in frustration, but had no chance to speak further as a clatter sounded from the hallway. Before anyone could investigate, a rumpled and dishevelled man stumbled into the kitchen. "Death Eaters! In Diagon Alley… a lot of them!"

Dumbledore walked through the door, his eyes sharp. "Kingsley, calm down. What happened?"

Sarah had stopped listening; she was already looking for the pot of floo powder she knew had to be there somewhere. She turned around in frustration and shrugged to Alanna; no luck. In the mean time 'Kingsley' was telling Dumbledore of an ambush of at least fifteen Death Eaters; they had already killed two innocent witches and were making their way slowly to the entrance of muggle London.

The other members of the Order had all rushed into the room by this stage, and Kingsley was gulping down his glass of water like a man dying of thirst. Sarah stepped forward. "What are we waiting for? Where's the floo powder?"

Dumbledore fixed her with an even stare. "My dear, you are still recovering from your last tangle with the killing curse. It will be too dangerous for you."

Sarah glared at the old man. "I'm fine. I can help, and I need to prove myself to Moody over there anyway."

"But now is not the time to prove yourself. Do not tell me you don't get dizzy during the day." Sarah's eyes narrowed at his assessment.

"You need all the hands you can get. They already outnumber us twelve to fifteen; you can't afford to make that eleven to fifteen." Sarah's look dared him to challenge that.

He coughed lightly into his hand. "The odds are considerably worse than that. Molly, I am assuming you will not let Fred and George participate?"

Above the two boys groaning she answered, "That's right. These two are staying home, with me."

Sarah stared at Dumbledore. "So you think that seven versus fifteen are good odds?"

He sighed, and Sarah grinned triumphantly. He showed them the floo pot, which was cleverly disguised in a jar labelled 'coffee', _I should have guessed; these guys don't drink coffee…_ And led everyone to the fire. He was the first through, followed by Sarah, Alanna and the rest of the Order.

Sarah rolled out of the fireplace and waited for Alanna to do the same. The went to join Dumbledore as he stood off to one side, waiting.

When they were all assembled and about to advance, Sarah heard a hiss at her ear. She turned to find Moody staring at her, he hissed again. "Wands at the ready!"

She shook her head with a little smirk, glancing at Alanna. The red head was grinning too. Before Moody could press the issue they heard a scream, and the sick laughter of Death Eaters. The ragtag band of combatants leapt out from around the corner; Sarah launched into a flying side kick that sent a Death Eater reeling. Sarah was sure she heard a crack when the blow landed on his chest.

Before her first victim could recover she had his wand in her hand, snapped, and was kicking the legs out from beneath him. He lay stunned on the flagstones, even as Sarah swung into a hammer fisted blow that sent another Death Eater into unconsciousness as it connected with his chin.

She rolled forward to dodge a curse, and heard a cry of 'Crucio!' She felt agonizing pain rip into her body and staggered, but recovered quickly enough to fix the Death Eater who had fired the curse with a dangerous leer. He tried to hit her again with the cruciatus curse; Sarah was too quick. She dodged and rolled forward in a somersault, coming up right in front of the cloaked figure. She drew her fist back, as though she was going to hit him in the face, and he brought his hand up to block the blow. Instead she launched a punch to his gut, and he doubled over in pain. As he sunk to the ground she snatched his wand off of him and snapped it in one fluid motion.

At one stage during the fight she found herself back to back with Moody, and she asked, "Is this proof enough for you?"

"For now." Was the grunted reply, and Sarah dodged away from another blast, and clapped her hands over the ears of a Death Eater that was trying to sneak up on Alanna. He sunk to the ground with a groan; the concussion already taking effect.

Sarah grinned at Alanna, who returned the expression, and they swapped places, each attacking a Death Eater that was about to attack the other. Sarah broke her target's leg with a well placed kick, and snapped his wand on the way down as he howled in pain.

Ministry Aurors chose that moment to appear, and Dumbledore, McGonagall and Snape pulled Sarah and Alanna out of the fraying, yelling that they need to disappear before the Ministry saw them. They were led back to the fireplace, where they each grabbed a handful of floo powder and enunciated clearly as they stepped into the flames, "Hogwarts; headmaster's office."

When Sarah tumbled out of the fireplace, she grinned at Alanna. "That was fun." She wiped a smudge of soot across her brow with her finger, trying to fix her appearance. Dumbledore, who had again stepped gracefully from the fireplace, fixed her with a 'scourgify' and sent her back to her dorms.

As she left the office he said, "It seems you'll be going to Hogsmeade this weekend after all." Sarah grinned.


	8. Chapter 7

Chapter 7:

Sarah tucked her hands into her warm jacket pocket, glancing surreptitiously at the dark clouds that threatened snow. Winter had set in with full force, and she had donned a scarf, heavy jacket and pants that were hard to move in in retaliation. A beanie topped the outfit off; Alanna had taken one look at her before she left and grinned smugly.

"You won't catch me out in that weather." She had said. Alanna was notorious around Corus for her hate of cold weather; it was said that she spent every day indoors rather than brave a cool breeze.

Now Sarah found herself trudging through half a foot of snow, her feet already drenched, as she listened to Ron exclaim- again- about how miraculous it was that Snape had allowed them to serve their detentions on Friday rather than Saturday, enabling them to visit Hogsmeade with the rest of the students.

Sarah groaned. "And I've told you, more than once, that Dumbledore probably thought Snape was being a bastard, and decided to spare you your Hogsmeade detentions… And I'm still amazed that you managed to get into trouble the _one night_ that I leave the castle. Though I was pleased to hear that you beat the snot out of Malfoy."

Ron's grin didn't fade, and he tried to reiterate what he was saying for the eleventh time. Sarah held him off with a raised hand. "Ah! Now, Ronnikins, stop it. It's annoying, and I've heard a heap of stories about you I can regale Harry and Hermione with."

He gaped at the use of his annoying nickname. "How did you know about that…" Harry and Hermione were grinning from ear to ear.

Sarah smirked. "I had an interesting visit with some acquaintances of Dumbledore's on Thursday night… at a certain place I'm sure you three are aware of."

Hermione gasped. "You mean you went to -" Her voice cut off as she choked on her own breath. Sarah gave her a thump on the back in sympathy.

"Yes I've been _there._ There was a bit of fun to be had in Diagon Alley, but that's all I say until we get back to Hogwarts. Who knows who has listening spells on these trees." She waved vaguely at the offending branches.

Harry fixed her with an accusing look. "You didn't happen to meet-"

"Mad Eye?" Sarah asked, nodding. "Yes, and I had 'constant vigilance' drilled into me _all evening!_ Even though you called him cool, and awesome, and incredible, you never mentioned how completely _bonkers_ he was!"

Ron, Harry and Hermione laughed, as though there was some sort of private joke to be had, and Sarah stormed ahead, ignoring them. She stated as much. "I'm ignoring you. When you start talking about something I know about, I _might_ deign to join in." She put on her most regal, aloof voice and held her nose high. Their laughter followed her as she walked ahead, but she soon recovered from her bout of nobility and joined them again, falling back to walk in line with the trio of students.

Their first visit, to Sarah's delight, was a store called Honeydukes. Sarah thought she had died and gone to heaven. There were all kinds of sweets and chocolates; ones that Sarah hadn't dreamed of existing. The others all laughed at Sarah's wide eyed wonder, feeding her samples of random chocolates that made her tongue tingle, or her face change colour for a few seconds before returning to it's normal colour. She was saved from more _permanent_ changes by Hermione, who stopped Ron and Harry feeding her canary puffs and other deceptive sweets.

By the time they had left it seemed that Harry had bought out the entire store, and they each carried bags full of sweets as they wandered through Hogsmeade. Harry, Ron and Hermione showed her the Shrieking Shack; albeit from a distance, and described the adventure that had taken place there. Sarah saw a flash of sadness from Harry when Sirius was mentioned, and gave him a sympathetic pat on the shoulder.

The next store was Zonko's, and Sarah found herself mesmerized by the Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes skiving snackboxes- the very fact that they were best sellers was almost as amusing as the fact that half of the tales they had regaled her with involved them slipping Ron a snackbox here or there.

The four students left the crowded joke shop without buying anything, although Sarah was tempted to find something to do to Alanna, just to annoy her. The fact that she had _no_ money, whatsoever, was an incentive not to. Only the promise of Harry paying for the butterbeers led her into the Three Broomsticks, where they ordered four of the fizzing beverages and a booth to drink them in.

Sarah sighed as the liquid fizzed its way down her throat, warming her body. Their relaxation, however, was broken when a rude, familiar voice cut through the ambience in the room. "Three butterbeers, now." A loud click said that coins had been slapped on the counter.

Sarah groaned. "Why? Why can't I just have one day without his insolence and taunts? Why can't he just leave me alone for _one bloody day_?!"

The voice sounded loudly. "Well if it isn't Potty, Weasel and the mudblood!" The sneer on Malfoy's face carried in his voice; Sarah realised he hadn't seen her yet, she was hidden from his view by a large wizard that almost rivalled Hagrid in size. "What's this Weasel? Drinking your one bottle of butterbeer a year? That _is_ all your family can afford, after all."

Sarah rolled her eyes, before clearing her throat and standing. She met Malfoy's cool blue eyes with green-grey ice, doing her best impression of angered royalty. His yelp carried across the room, as did the laughter that followed him when he scurried out the door.

Sarah sat down again, smirking, but she couldn't keep the troubled look off of her face. She was pleased, even happy, that Malfoy feared her. And that was what troubled her. Madam Rosmerta carried over another round of beverages, winking at the boys as she said, "Care of Mr Malfoy."

Harry and Ron grinned, but Hermione noticed the troubled look on Sarah's face. She nudged her and asked quietly, ignored by the boys as they chatted loudly, "What's wrong?"

Sarah shook her head, as if to say 'drop it.' Hermione _did_ drop it, if only for a little while. On the walk back to the castle she kept stealing glances at the other girl, who pretended not to notice.

When they separated from the boys, heading up to their own dorm rooms, Sarah flopped onto her bed, closing the blinds with a wave of her hand. Hermione tugged them open again, and when Sarah met her eyes she saw worry. "Sarah, what's the matter? This isn't still about Thursday, is it?"

Sarah shook her head. "No, Alanna helped clear that up for me."

"Then what is it? Is it anything to do with what you said by the lake? About how Alanna is like a mother to you?" The look on Sarah's face told Hermione she had hit a sore spot.

The other girl cleared her throat. "No, it's not about that either. I just… I don't like being feared. It feels… _wrong._ The fact that Malfoy fears me may be useful to avoid a dispute with the little snot rag, but it feels as though I'm abusing my presence, scaring him like that. It doesn't feel… _right._" She had dropped her gaze as she spoke, and now she looked at her hands, held in her lap, as she tried to force them not to tremble.

A weight on the bed told her Hermione had sat next to her. The arm around her shoulders confirmed it. "Don't let it upset you. Malfoy's a prick; he deserves to be frightened every now and then."

Sarah stood up quickly, rounding on Hermione. "Yes, but it's not _me_ he should be scared of! I never wanted to frighten anyone, I don't like being feared! Sure, it might be useful, but I'd prefer to do things the hard way than get them done because people are afraid of me! Just because I'm different, because I can do things others can't, doesn't mean they should hate me!" Sarah was ashamed to feel tears burning in her eyes.

Hermione frowned. "Sarah, what's this really about?"

Sarah swiped angrily at her eyes, brushing the tears aside. "Nothing." She turned away from the other girl, and was about to leave the room when silence stopped her. She had been expecting a 'wait!' or another push at the truth from Hermione; the fact that nothing came confused her. She stood there, her back to the other girl, shoulders hunched and head hung low.

Finally Hermione spoke. "Who hates you, Sarah? Apart from Malfoy, but who important hates you?" Her voice came softly, and Sarah could tell she hadn't stood to try to stop her from leaving. Before she could answer, Parvati and Lavender strolled in, leaving the door open to the light din from the common room. Hermione came up behind her and gently led her down the stairs and out through the Fat Lady's Portrait. Before Sarah knew it they were at Moaning Myrtle's bathroom.

The bushy haired girl leaned her up against a basin, and grabbed her by the shoulders. "Sarah, talk to me." She saw Sarah close her eyes as a rainbow of emotions flashed across her face.

When she spoke, it was in a quiet voice, devoid of all life, as though she were speaking about another person, another life. "When my mother found out about my magic, she disowned me. Called me the spawn of Satan, threw me out of my home. I've never felt such hatred directed against me before. I left and returned to Tortall, and I've only spoken once about it since then… it's a wound that Malfoy's hatred reopened…"

Despite her emotionless voice, tears dripped down her face and she suddenly found it difficult to breath past the lump in her throat. Hermione was hugging her tightly, but Sarah jumped abruptly when she felt a cold sensation pass through her shoulder. She turned quickly, offbalance as she saw a luminescent figure floating beside her.

The dead girl had glasses and pigtails, a bit of a stubby nose and a too-patient look on her face. "Oh, you poor dear… to have your mother disown you." When she spoke her voice was nasally and shrill.

Sarah was immediately on guard. "Who are you?"

The ghost looked affronted by Sarah's suspicious tone. "This is my home, and you ask who _I _am? Oh, there's no respect for the dead anymore, is there?" The voice turned into a wail. "I'm dead, but no one caaarrreessss!"

The spirit literally zoomed into a toilet bowl, disappearing into the plumbing. Sarah blinked, and turned to Hermione. "Who was that?"

"Moaning Myrtle, she's not important." The girl said flippantly.

"Not important!" The nasally voice was outraged as Myrtle zoomed back into the room, stopping just short of Hermione's nose. "Not important?!"

Hermione groaned and dragged Sarah out of the bathroom, shaking her head. Sarah allowed herself to be dragged, and Hermione stopped about twenty meters down the hallway. She turned to Sarah, her eyes serious. "Thankyou for trusting me enough to tell me. We're your friends; we'll always be here for you, okay?"

Sarah nodded, relieved, and almost laughed. The halted expression came out as a snort, and Hermione looked on confused. "What's so funny?"

Sarah shook her head, a smile that was devoid of all mirth on her face. "I just realised you won't disown me; you've known about magic for longer than I have."

Hermione shook her head and took Sarah's arm once more. "Come on, we have that Potions essay we need to write, and the Herbology essay, and you have the first years Defence Without a Wand class in an hour." She dragged her down the hallway, back up towards the Gryffindor Tower, but before they could give the Fat Lady the pass word they were intercepted by Professor McGonagall.

"Miss Gibson, the headmaster would like a word." Her sharp green eyes didn't betray a speck of what was going on.

Sarah shrugged. "Sure, see you after my lesson with the kiddies, Hermione." She turned back to McGonagall. "So, what's the password today? Chocolate Frogs?"

Amusement sparked in the older woman's eyes; she shook her head. "No, this time it's Raspberry Twists."

Sarah nodded and set off down the hallway, whistling a jaunty tune, leaving the other two women, one young and one old, standing there shaking their heads. Hermione sighed. "She puts on such a brave front for everyone…"

McGonagall looked her over appraisingly. "With what she is here to do, it will need to be more than a front."

PAGE BREAK!!!

Sarah stepped off of the moving stair case, hand poised to knock on the door. A voice from inside stopped her. "Come."

Sarah rolled her eyes, strolling into Professor Dumbledore's office. "How did you know I was there?"

His eyes twinkled. "I heard the gargoyle moving."

She nodded slowly, but she quickly frowned. "Hang on, _I _could barely hear the thing move, and I was on it. How did _you_ hear it?"

He didn't answer, instead gesturing to the chair in front of his desk.

Alanna joined them several minutes later, and was greeted by the sight of both Sarah and Dumbledore screwing their faces up at the sour lemon drops sitting on his desk. Tears streamed down Sarah's face, and she thumped herself on the chest. "Whoo, boy. Those were the most potent you've had since I've been here…"

He nodded, recovering from the indignity with a sip of water. "I must agree with you there, Sarah. Alanna, come in, sit down. I have some disturbing news…"

Sarah frowned. She didn't like the sound of _that_. The esteemed wizard continued. "It seems one of the Death Eaters from Thursday night was one of the Death Eaters who escaped their attack on Hogwarts; he recognized you. Our sources say that Voldemort has become rather… interested in you. It doesn't seem he realises you are masquerading as a student; you weren't in uniform when you fought them either time, which is good."

Sarah winced. "Okay, so we lasted marginally better hiding from Voldemort than we did hiding from Hermione and the gang… what do we do about it?"

Dumbledore regarded her carefully. "There is nothing we can do. It is important that you remain with Harry, to protect him, on the upcoming holidays. I believe he intends to stay with the Weasleys; I have already spoken with Molly and Arthur and they have already said it would be a pleasure to have you for the holidays. You're invited also, Alanna."

"Oh, good, I was beginning to feel left out." The red head replied dryly.

Sarah smirked. "Alright, so Voldemort is beginning to wisen up, but he still doesn't know much about me. I think it's time to spread some misinformation. We need to do whatever we can to make him think of me as a lucky, inadequate fool, but draw him _away_ from the conclusion that I'm a student. How do we do that?"

Alanna stared blankly. "I have no idea… Maybe you can fall into some kind trap and barely get out with your life… or maybe we can skip the part where he thinks you're an idiot and go straight to the part where you beat the snot out of him?"

Sarah grinned, but shook her head. "I like Dumbledore's plan better. Voldemort needs to think me contemptible; a hard task, I know, I'm just that loveable. But it's still the best idea. So, we need to think of a way to do it, without revealing my lovely gold and red tie. I have no idea…"

Try as they might they couldn't think of anything short of getting herself killed to make Voldemort think she was a complete idiot; she had already survived the killing curse once, it was certain she was on his scopes.

After almost half an hour of ideas tossed around and eventually thrown out, Sarah struck inspiration. "Do we know of any Death Eater meetings anytime soon? Cause I'll stumble in, see the scary black cloaks and white masks, and run like hell. Screaming, probably. How else can I look stupid? Can I have a bottle of firewhiskey? Ooh, ooh, I have the _perfect_ drunk stumble, watch!" Sarah went to stand, but a hand on her forearm stopped her.

Alanna was laughing silently, shaking with the effort to keep it quiet. Dumbledore looked amused, although he was shaking his head. "Unfortunately we have no news of Death Eater meetings, although… it perhaps isn't a bad idea. I'll have our sources-"

Sarah interrupted. "This source wouldn't happen to be Professor Snape, would it?"

Dumbledore's face was unreadable as he said, "I have no idea what you're talking about." Sarah nodded, as though he had answered her question. She gestured for him to continue. "Our sources may be able to get the information required, and we can go from there. For now, however, perhaps it is time for you to get to class; the first years will be waiting."

Sarah and Alanna nodded and stood. They left the office and headed inwards, towards the heart of the castle, where the dining hall was situated. All of the tables had been pushed aside for the lessons; it had gotten much too cold outside for unseasoned witches and wizards to be physically training.

They swept into the room, cloaks trailing behind them as they eyed the first year students. So far they had managed three lessons with the students; with all the excitement of getting sick and fighting off Death Eaters there had been little time to teach them properly.

Sarah shrugged off her cloak, letting it fall to the floor as she scanned the first year students. A few had dropped out over the first few lessons; they couldn't handle the hard physical activity, or they grew bored with the meditations. The three Gifted students remained in the class, as did the promising Gryffindor boy she had seen- Fernando Sanchez, she remembered his name.

She gave the group of ten and eleven year olds a big grin- it was always good to encourage them with smiles and praise, she thought, rather than treat them the way she did the sixth years. Fernando returned her grin with an easy smile that had just a hint of mischief. Sarah cleared her throat.

"Alright, did we all have a good little holiday? Yes, no?" She looked around at the group of eleven students and frowned. "What happened to Amelia? Did she drop out too?"

Amelia was a promising young Slytherin, the only first year of that house to sign up. She didn't care about what her house mates thought of her; it was common knowledge that she thought she had been placed in the wrong house. She could be found most of the time in the library, and Sarah had grown to like the girl.

Fernando winced. "No… she didn't quit. She's in the infirmary, recovering from a stupefy curse. The Slytherins… aren't too friendly to her. They don't like that she, well I think the exact words were, 'acts like a mudblood loving Gryffindor.'"

Sarah's eyes narrowed. She turned to Alanna, but the other knight was already nodding. "I'll take the first half, shall I? I'm sure I can manage the rudiments."

Sarah turned without saying another word and stalked out of the room, her face set. If she ran into any Slytherins on the way, she wouldn't be held responsible for any broken bones.

Lucky for the green and silver house members, none of them seemed to be roaming the halls on her way to the infirmary. She walked through the doors and sniffed in disdain- she had grown to hate the room in her prolonged stay.

Amelia was in the only occupied bed, looking impatient as Madam Pomfrey fussed over her. Snape was hovering over the bed, looking disapproving. "Amelia, would you please enlighten me, who cursed you?" The potion's master was saying.

Amelia fixed him with an even stare. "No one. I fell."

Sarah bit back a bitter laugh. "Ahuh. I've heard _that_ one. Come on, tell us before I ask Professor Snape to get the veritaserum."

The oily man glared at Sarah. "I am handling this."

Sarah grinned impishly. "I can see that, but I was wondering why one of my _students_ wasn't in attendance. I had to make sure that she wasn't dropping out."

He didn't stop glaring, but turned back to Amelia. "Tell me, who was it that stupefied you?"

Amelia shook her head stubbornly. "I'm serious, I fell."

Sarah sighed. "May I have a moment with my student, please?"

Snape looked about ready to argue, but sighed in resignation. He shooed Madam Pomfrey away as he strode towards the door. "Let me know if you find anything out."

Sarah nodded. "Right-eo. Will do… Captain Greaseball." She muttered when he was out of earshot. Amelia snickered.

Sarah turned to the younger girl seriously. "Who did it? Was it Malfoy? If it was, I'll throttle him good and proper."

She shook her head. "Really, I fell. I must have hit my head."

Sarah shook her head. "Ahuh. Now, Snape and Pomfrey are gone, and you can talk to me. I don't want any lies. Tell me, who stupefied you?"

Amelia looked reluctant, but sighed. "It was Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle. They jumped me, asked whether I was turning into a Gryffindor, and then they cursed me…" While she talked Sarah fingered her amber stone, trying to determine a lie. When there was no reaction, Sarah growled low in her throat.

"He's going to pay. I'll speak to Professor Trebond, but for now you need two things. One, private lessons. I want you to join in the other grades' lessons as well, including the sixth years. The second thing is for me to ask Professor Trebond to ask Professor Dumbledore to find you alternate sleeping arrangements; hopefully close to the Gryffindor quarters."

Amelia looked about ready to object, but Sarah held up a hand, spinning around and walking purposefully towards the door. "Don't worry," She threw over her shoulder. "I won't tell Snape what he wants to know. I _still_ don't like him, way too greasy."

Sarah stalked back into the dining hall, her face darkened by a scowl. Pulling Alanna aside, she kept her eyes on the students doing drills and explained Amelia's circumstances to the other knight. When she was finished, she said, "So I guess I'll be running some extra lessons in the mornings…"

Alanna, who had swore a blue streak when she heard what Sarah had to say, nodded. "We'll go to speak with Dumbledore when we finish here. You're right, she needs different quarters. She can't stay in a place where she has absolutely no friends; it'll just be a matter of time before she ends up in the infirmary for worse wounds."

Sarah didn't respond, instead she clapped her hands loudly. "Alright, that's enough of the basics for now. Christina, Laura, Nicholas," She said, naming the three Gifted students in the grade, "Time for you to work with Alanna. The rest of you, we'll continue the training but step it up a bit, eh? How about three techniques?"

Sarah grinned at the chorus of tired affirmatives, and settled herself low in her stance. "Alright, the first is the open palmed strike. It's like a punch, but you need to keep your fingers curled away from your palm, and you want to strike with the base of it. Like this-" She performed the technique three times for her students, slowly and precisely. "Your turn."

She watched as they all attempted the technique, some with more luck than others. She corrected a young Hufflepuff girl's stance, and scrutinized Fernando's strike for a long moment before nodding. "Good. I can't ever fault you; keep it that way."

The young boy grinned. After ten minutes of practicing the technique Sarah held up a hand to stop them. "Alright then, practice that in your spare time. Remember, I'll know if you don't… Now, a new kick. This one is called the Crescent Kick. If you can all perfect this one, maybe next week I'll let you practice sparring against one another. Now," She stood up a little in her stance, preparing to swing her leg up and around. She moved her leg in an ellipsoidal movement, bringing it back around to where she began before repeating the kick twice more. "Give it a shot."

Every student struggled with the new kick, attempting without much luck to swing their legs around in a smooth fashion. Sarah chuckled as she saw Fernando's face darken. "Don't worry about it. It took me a good three weeks of solid practice before I managed a perfect kick. I couldn't make my body move the way I wanted it to. Just keep trying." He nodded and threw his leg around quickly; his face contorted in pain as his hamstring screamed.

Sarah supported him as he staggered. "Ow…" He groaned, tears in his eyes.

She shook her head, amused. "Don't try _that_ hard. Alright then, let's get you to the infirmary. You probably just pulled a muscle. The rest of you, you might as well warm down like I showed you and get to your homework or something. I have to speak to Professor Dumbledore about something anyway. Alanna." She nodded to the red head, who nodded back.

She grinned at their relieved sighs and helped the young Gryffindor hobble out of the hall, and down the corridors towards the infirmary. She whistled as she reached the door, calling Madam Pomfrey's attention. "Hey, we got another one. Mr Sanchez here thought he could pull off a perfect crescent kick by throwing his leg around hard and fast; _not_ the way I taught him, mind you."

Madam Pomfrey tsked as she helped the boy to a bed, and Sarah smirked. "That'll teach you to respect your limits, won't it?"

The boy mumbled a reply, and Sarah shook her head. She turned to find Amelia watching in interest. "I haven't talked to Professor Dumbledore yet, but I'm on my way now. We'll see what he has to say about your… alternate arrangements." She raised her voice. "Fernando, rest up on that leg. I want you back at training next week."

Another mumbled reply, and she walked back through the door, making her way through the maze of corridors towards the head master's office. Muttering 'Honeycombe waffles' to the statue, she leapt onto the top step as the stair case started moving. When she reached the top she knocked on the headmaster's door and waited to be acknowledged.

Dumbledore's voice floated through the wooden barrier. "Come."

She twisted the door knob and strode to stand before his desk. Before she could speak he met her eyes. "This is about young Miss Jones' circumstances, I presume?"

Sarah blinked. "How do you always know…" She shook her head. "Yes, it is. Amelia needs alternate sleeping arrangements. It's hard enough to avoid those bigoted Slytherins in the hallways; she lives in the same dorms as them. They stupefied her, and I'm sure they won't stop at that if she doesn't get out of there soon."

He regarded Sarah over the top of his glasses. "And where shall we put her?"

Sarah frowned. "I don't know… there are plenty of rooms here, I'm sure there's one that can be converted into some quarters for her. I don't know what the Sorting Hat saw in her, but she isn't a Slytherin, not at heart."

Dumbledore frowned. "The Sorting Hat is never wrong."

Sarah rolled her eyes. "It though I would make a good Slytherin, and look at me, not an ounce of cunning within me. You want to know what I think? I think it shoves Death Eater kids in the Slytherin house, regardless of cunning, and leaves them there to rot. It's not Amelia's fault that her dad's in Azkaban and her mother's a total nutcase Voldemort supporter."

Dumbledore looked up sharply. "How did you know about that?"

Sarah rolled her eyes. "I've heard all the rumours. The older Gryffindors hate her because of her family; the only friend she's made is Fernando Sanchez, and even he won't be seen in public with her, outside of lessons. Face it, she needs some sort of protection, and short of moving her to sixth year and Gryffindor the best thing to do is get her out of those dorms."

He sighed. "I'll see what can be done for her. You know who stupefied her?"

Sarah nodded. "Malfoy. The little puke stain…"

Dumbledore nodded. "I will consult with the previous headmasters, to see whether anything like this has happened before. I shall speak with you again tomorrow, but for now, Mr Potter, Miss Granger and Mr Weasley are waiting for you at the gargoyle."

Sarah grinned. "Thanks Professor. See you tomorrow."

When she emerged from the moving stair case she noticed the trio waiting for her. Hermione grinned brightly. "Alanna told us you'd probably be here. We're going to visit Hagrid, did you want to come?"

Sarah nodded, still absorbed in her own thoughts. "Sounds good…"

Hermione frowned. "What's wrong? What did you need to see Professor Dumbledore for?"

Sarah met Hermione's eyes. "Hmm? Oh, Malfoy's being a twat again… he hexed Amelia Jones earlier today, I was just asking what we could do for her. She doesn't belong in Slytherin."

Harry raised an eyebrow. "You know the Sorting Hat doesn't make mistakes."

Sarah narrowed her eyes. "It wanted to put me in Slytherin for a little while."

"But it didn't." Ron said practically.

"And it shouldn't have put Amelia there either. Now are we going to visit Hagrid?"

PAGE BREAK!!!

Sarah huddled in her cloak, wishing she had stopped to pick up a heavier overcoat. The snow was ankle deep, which made the going very slow. She saw her breath in front of her face every time she exhaled. Hermione trudged beside her, the boys two steps ahead of them. Together they trudged towards the hut. Sarah could imagine Alanna standing at her window, watching them trudge through the snow, cackling like a madwoman at Sarah's misfortune.

Sarah shook her head to banish the image, and gasped as an incredible cold stole over her, feeling like it was coming from within her very soul. She faltered as she heard Hermione inhale sharply, she saw the other girl stagger. She could see the side of Ron's face; it was as pale as the snow they trod upon, his freckles contrasted sharply. Harry reacted differently than the others, whipping out his wand and spinning around, his eyes searching.

Sarah breathed heavily, trying to breath past the lump that had formed in her throat. She heard her mother's voice, telling her to leave and never return, she felt the pain of her hatred. She heard the leering voice of the man that had tried to rape her, she felt the revulsion she had felt when he trapped her in the alley. She saw the oak doors of the Chamber of the Ordeal, she felt the fear of entering the Chamber once again. Images of her stay in the Chamber and her first mission for the gods melted into the sensation in a mosaic of pain and suffering.

She barely registered as Harry grunted, "Dementors."

The pain gripped her completely and wholly; she curled into the foetal position, heedless of the snow. She wrapped her arms around her knees, eyes wide but unseeing as tears dripped down her face. She had no idea what Dementors were, but if she never ran into them again it would be too soon.

The pain grew more intense, and Sarah sobbed uncontrollably. Out of the corner of her eye she saw creatures hovering above the ground, wrapped in tattered black cloaks, the cowls not revealing anything of the creatures faces. Sarah stared as they grew closer and her pain increased. One swooped towards her and she flinched away, too occupied with her pain to think of trying to defend herself.

It grew closer and Sarah's vision blurred, darkening. She heard a male voice yelling a spell, she saw a white blur appear above her but it was already too late. She gave into the bliss of unconsciousness, allowing darkness to take her away from the pain that assaulted her.

TBC……


	9. Chapter 8

Chapter 8:

Sarah's eyelids fluttered open heavily, and she groaned as she felt her head throb. She tried to sit but hands forced her down. "Slowly, slowly, take it easy." She heard Alanna's voice. Sarah opened her eyes wide, blinking the sleep from her eyes.

"What happened?" She looked around and swore. "And how did I end up here? Why do I _always_ end up here?"

Before Alanna could answer, Madam Pomfrey bustled towards Sarah with a brown, chocolate looking substance. "Here, eat this. It will make you feel better."

Sarah looked sceptical. "Ahuh… I wasn't dumped, you know. I was attacked. I don't need chocolate."

Madam Pomfrey rolled her eyes, used to Sarah's sense of humour from her weeks in the infirmary. "Eat up. Trust me, it _will_ make you feel better."

Sarah ignores the offered chocolate, pushing herself up further in a sitting position. She closed her eyes as her stomach rebelled, rolling with nausea. The voice of Professor Dumbledore sounded in her ears. "To answer your question, Sarah, you were attacked by Dementors."

Her eyes flew open. "As in those creatures that suck out your happiness and take your soul? Just why did they attack us?"

He hesitated before answering. "It would seem that Voldemort may be aware of where you are, and who you are."

Her eyes narrowed. "How do we know it wasn't just a random attack, or an attack on Harry?"

Dumbledore shook his head. "I believe, my dear, that it was an attack on you."

Alanna growled low in her throat. "How do we defeat them, these… Dementors?"

"The only way to defeat a Dementor is to use the Patronus Charm. You need a wand to do that."

Alanna swore at his answer; Sarah thought she saw a trace of fear in her eyes. "So that leaves me out of the fight against them."

Sarah closed her eyes with a sigh. She ordered her stomach to obey, but the nausea wouldn't go away. She felt the chocolate being placed gently in her hands. "Sarah, are you okay?" Harry's voice sounded from a bed across from her own.

"Harry, lie back down." Madam Pomfrey snapped. "Sarah, eat the chocolate, for crying out loud!"

Sarah sighed and took a nibble, afraid her stomach might be offended. When the contents of her lunch didn't force their way up onto the flagstones she took a larger bite. She sighed as a warm sensation spread down into her stomach and through her body. Quickly she finished of the block of chocolate.

Sarah opened her eyes to look blearily at the others. "How long have you three been up?"

Hermione glanced at Harry and Ron. "Um, we didn't pass out."

Sarah frowned. "Huh? Why didn't the Dementors attack you three as well? Do you mean Dumbledore was right about them being here for me?"

Ron answered loudly, in a brash tone. "Oh, no, they attacked us too. We just knew how to defend ourselves. We've all known the Patronus Charm since last year. We did our best to defend you too, but… well the Dementors got to you first. Harry stopped them from performing the_ kiss_, though." He finished on a much too bright tone.

Sarah shuddered at the thought of having her soul sucked out and shook her head. "I need to learn the Patronus Charm. Thanks Harry." He shrugged off her gratitude.

PAGE BREAK!!!

Sarah gasped for air, she struggled to untangled the blankets that constrained her legs, the sweat soaked sheets stuck to her skin and made the task that much more difficult. When she had managed her difficult task she glanced around surreptitiously. Grimacing, she noticed Hermione gazing over in sympathy. "Nightmares?"

Sarah grunted, nodded, and stalked into the bathroom. She emerged scant minutes later, an arm and a wand stretched through the slightly ajar door. "_Accio_ school clothes!"

Hermione watched, and waited, a further few moments until Sarah emerged from the bathroom, struggling with her school tie. Tying and untying the offending garment, she finally threw it off after a third attempt. "Damn tie…" She muttered as it landed on her bed.

Hermione stood and gestured to Sarah. When the other girl stood before her, Hermione gathered her tie from the bed and began fitting it around her neck. When she was done she gave it one last adjustment, and patted Sarah's shoulder. With a small smile of amusement she murmured, "There, done." Careful not to wake Parvati or Lavender, she led Sarah out to the common room. "Do you want to talk about it?"

Sarah shook her head. "No. Just your basic, run of the mill, Chamber of the Ordeal rubbish. I'm fine, Hermione. The run in with the Dementors must have stirred it up again."

The bushy haired girl nodded. "Alright then, just remember I'm here. Do you want to head down to breakfast? We have the potions exam today, we'll need a full stomach to put up with Snape…"

Sarah nodded, a frown still gracing her face. With a ruckus they heard someone descending the stairs from the boys' dormitory; when they saw it was Harry and Ron they waited for the boys to get dressed before heading to the dining hall.

Sarah barely ate a slice of toast all breakfast, and Harry and Ron shot glances at Hermione, asking with their eyes, _What's__ the matter with her?_ Hermione shook her head in reply. When they left for their potions exam, with Ron complaining loudly, Sarah kept her head down and her eyes shielded.

She ignored Snape's quips throughout the minutes before the test, and she finished in half the time. The questions were unreasonably difficult, but Sarah had made an effort to make sure she would pass the class, to spite the potion master.

She laid her head down on the desk, allowing the cool wood to clear her muzzy head. "Miss Gibson, is there a problem?" The voice dripped with ice, and Sarah groaned quietly before raising her head.

"Not at all, Professor. I was just waiting for the lesson to finish."

Contempt filled his voice; there was a snicker from the Slytherins at his reply. "Too difficult for you, Gibson?"

_Cocky bastard…_ "Not at all, sir. I finished ten minutes ago. I didn't think we were allowed to leave early, so I was waiting for the class to finish…"

His open mouthed expression brought snickers to the Gryffindors' side of the room; he glared at them. "Finished already, you say? I'll mark it right now then, shall I?"

Sarah shrugged. "Suit yourself. I'll go back to resting my eyes while you do."

He looked about ready to take off points, but instead turned and returned to his desk. She let her head drop back to the desk with a thud; closing her eyes, she tried to drown out the scratching of quills against parchment. When the class was over the sour Potions Master passed back her sheet of parchment. She felt a grip of panic as she gazed upon an 'E'. _How did I get an E? I studied…_ But then she realised that an 'E' stood for Exceeds Expectation, and she let Snape see her bright grin.

"Thanks, Professor." She handed him back the parchment and joined Harry, Ron and Hermione at the door. "I never thought I'd be happy to get an E." She commented.

Hermione beamed. "Well done! We have Transfigurations next, let's see whether you can do it again!"

Sarah shook her head. "Not bloody likely…" She muttered. Hermione slapped her arm disapprovingly, but didn't disagree. On their way to Transfiguration Harry placed a hand on Sarah's shoulder.

"Sarah, what's the matter? You've been preoccupied all day…" He trailed off when he saw her expression; one of open vulnerability.

"I'm afraid, Harry. I'm afraid that if Voldemort brings Dementors against me then I'll fail in my mission, and this world will fall into chaos." She chuckled mirthlessly. "And look at me, mouth like a steel trap. I've really got to learn more about this undercover stuff, anyone could have overheard me then…"

He spun her around as she tried to walk away. "You know there _are_ ways to defeat Dementors." His face was serious.

"Yeah, like what? The Patronus charm? The way I hear it you need _happy_ memories to make it work." She pulled away from his grasp, ignoring the looks Hermione and Ron were sending her.

Harry, however, wouldn't let sleeping dogs lie. "I'm sure you can think of something. Come on, try."

Sarah rounded on him, fire in her eyes. "Like what? The best moments in my life have been overshadowed by pain, suffering and misery." She looked around, searching for anyone who might overhear. When she realised they were alone, she shoved Harry against the wall, _hard._ "When I arrived in Tortall, Mithros gave me visions of people suffering in dying, visions that haunted my nights. I trained so hard I didn't have _time_ to enjoy myself. When I took a break, the _one time_ I spent the day doing something other than fighting or studying, I was confronted by the poverty of the Mire, before some pig of a man attacked me." Sarah paused for a breath.

"When I was Knighted, which should have been a happy day after the _Ordeal_ it took, it was overshadowed by the fact that I had a mission to go on scant _days_ later, one that would probably kill me. When I got back from the mission I was sad to leave the place I had grown to love, even if I did look forward to seeing my family again. But when I went to my family, and explained about who I had become, my mother threw me out like the trash. When I went back to Tortall, to hopefully settle down and start a life, and I get pulled away from my friends, away from my new family, and into some place where everything is different! Now you tell me, Harry, how I can be happy after all of that."

Hermione's chin trembled, and Sarah sighed. "Look, I'm sorry, okay? It's not bad here, and you guys are great, but everytime I look at Alanna I'm reminded that she's not with her family. And everytime I see the Daily Prophet I'm reminded that people are dead because of Voldemort; because _I _can't find him. Just like people died because I wasn't ready fast enough in Tortall."

"Sarah…" Hermione took a hesitant step towards the other girl, even as the boys stared in shock.

Sarah shook her head and turned to leave. "Come on, we can't be late for a test."

PAGE BREAK!!!

Sarah sat at the end of the table for dinner, the first time she had done so. She ignored the first year students that clamoured for her attention, preferring instead to focus on the plate of food that was going uneaten before her. Fernando, who was particularly persistent, finally stopped asking her questions towards the end of the dinner, leaving her in the quiet she desired.

As she stood to leave Alanna appeared at her elbow, tugging her into a niche in the corridor outside the dining hall. "What's the matter?"

Sarah freed her arm with a tug. "Nothing. Excuse me." She didn't meet Alanna's eyes as she walked passed, in the direction of the Gryffindor common room. The red head stopped her when she cleared her throat.

"No, what's the matter? Tell me, Sarah, we're in this together."

Sarah shook her head but continued walking. She ignored the older knight standing in the corridor, watching after her as she headed towards her dorm.

Sarah muttered the password to the Fat Lady, keeping her head down, and ignoring the clucking the Fat Lady was doing. "You need to speak up, deary. I almost couldn't understand you…"

Sarah trudged into the common room and took a look around. She realised how much she missed the privacy of her rooms in Corus, how much she missed her single-bed sized pallet with it's stiff mattress. She moved over to the window and took a look at the ground, at least fifty feet below. She missed seeing the training fields as she looked outside, or the road that led to the Royal Palace's entrance, where she would see merchant caravans or knights with a mission trotting past on their horses.

Unknowingly, she sighed. A voice sounded from behind her. "You really miss home, don't you?"

She turned to find Ginny Weasley standing behind her. Her eyes widened, and her breath caught in her throat. _Found out… again!_ She cleared her throat. "I… uh, I don't know what you're talking about."

The younger girl shook her head. "I overheard Ron speaking with Hermione and Harry. Apparently you _do_ miss home. And _apparently_ you really let them have it. Do you want to talk about it?"

Sarah laughed mirthlessly. "Thankyou, but no. You wouldn't understand."

The red head crossed her arms across her chest, an angry expression on her face. "I'm not _that_ young, you know. I'm only ten months younger than Ronnikins, and everyone knows girls are smarter than boys."

This time Sarah's laugh was full of warmth. "I haven't heard that one for a while. How's your training with Professor Trebond going, anyway? You're doing well in the physical stuff…" She trailed off when she noticed the other girl wasn't falling for it. She sighed. "Look, I don't want to talk about it, okay?" Sarah cut off when she noticed other students trickling through the portal. Noticing Hermione making a beeline for her, she closed her eyes in exasperation, before heading for the staircase.

The other girl caught up to her in the dorm room; they were alone for the moment, Parvati and Lavender always took longer at dinner than anyone else. They stood in silence for a moment, before Hermione opened her mouth hesitantly. Sarah prepared herself for another appeal to talk; she readied her refusal. "Um, do you need help studying for Herbology tomorrow?"

Sarah blinked before nodding once. "Thanks." She murmured quietly. Hermione just nodded and slipped an arm through Sarah's, leading her gently down the stairs.

PAGE BREAK!!!

Sarah readjusted the knapsack on her shoulder as she made her way down the steps and off of the train. She looked around, waiting for the others to join her on the platform. Alanna, Ginny, Ron and Harry had travelled to King's Cross station with Sarah; they were headed to 'the Burrow' as Harry called it, for the winter holidays. _Christmas holidays_… Sarah reminded herself.

Ron appeared at her elbow; the others were close behind him. "The letter from mum said that we need to floo to the Burrow. Dad's been busy with work lately, so there's no one to pick us up."

Sarah nodded and collected her suitcase from the pile, hefting it in her grip. She followed the others as they led their way to the Leaky Cauldron, a good ten minute walk from the station. By the time they arrived everyone, barring Alanna and Sarah, was complaining about not being able to use levitation spells in muggle London.

Harry led the way to the alley outside the Leaky Cauldron, dodging adorations from the bar's occupants, and gently freeing his arm from the grip of an elderly witch, even as she attempted to set him up with his granddaughter. When they reached Diagon Alley, they walked quickly towards the floo network. Harry took the first handful and stepped into the fireplace. "The Burrow." He enunciated clearly.

Then it was Ron's turn, Ginny's, Alanna's and finally Sarah's turn to enter the fireplace. When Sarah rolled out of the fireplace she was confronted by the site of a cozy home, filled with bric-a-brac and muggle knickknacks, as well as a clock with each of the Weasleys' faces on a hand. She watched as the hands with Ron and Ginny at the head joined the hands with Fred, George, Molly and Arthur in the 'at home' position.

Fred and George swept into the room, arms open in greeting. "Sarah! We-"

"Were just talking-"

"About you!" Finished George.

Ginny immediately turned suspicious. "How did you know who she was?"

Fred didn't miss a beat. "Do you see-"

"Any other-"

"Beautiful young women-"

"Here?" George finished. Alanna cleared her throat and he continued hastily. "Except you-"

"Our dear Professor Trebond-"

"But you are entirely too old to be a student." George finished again.

Ginny seemed to accept that answer, but asked another question. "Why were you talking about her?"

"Why, Ronnikins here-"

"Has written so much about her-"

"In his letters." Fred completed the sentence this time, and Sarah laughed.

"Can't you two complete your own sentences? It's getting kind of annoying…" She said.

Mrs Weasley chose that moment to enter the room. "Oh, hello dears. Fred, George, put their trunks away. Sarah, Professor Trebond, you'll be sharing a room with Ginny and Hermione when they get here. Harry, you'll be sharing with Ron again." They all nodded. "Now, while the boys are putting your bags away, who wants a hot chocolate?"

PAGE BREAK!!!

The next morning Sarah sat on a grassy knoll, over looking the meadows that surrounded the Weasleys' home. The sun was just rising above a hill in the distance, and it cast a brilliant orange glow over the snowy landscape. Sarah felt peace wash through her as she watched the scene.

The peace was interrupted, however, by the sound of Harry's voice. "Good morning, Sarah!" She barely glanced at the black haired boy as he rode towards her on his firebolt. He pulled to a halt next to her, hovering scant feet above the ground.

"Good morning, Harry." She said with a sigh, standing up and brushing dirt from her pants.

He looked at her hesitantly. "So… thought of any happy memories yet?"

"Bunnies." She muttered as she turned towards the house. He stopped her from walking towards the building by edging his broom out in front of her.

"Then I guess we'll just have to try and make some. Catch." He threw something towards her; Sarah barely had time to register that it was a broom before her hand closed around it.

"What do you mean?" Her expression was guarded.

Before Harry could answer there was a shriek from inside the house, and Sarah started forward. She heard Molly Weasley yelling, "Ronald, Ginny, Fred, George! What have I told you about riding broomsticks in the house!" Before the four Weasleys rode out to meet them on the top of the hill. Fred had a rough ball that somewhat resembled a quaffle in his hands; George carried two hoops large enough to fit the ball through.

Sarah stood there, bewildered, as Harry grinned smugly. "We're going to teach you how to play Quidditch."

Sarah shook her head. "You want me to float high up in the air with nothing but a piece of wood to keep me there? Uh uh… I'll keep my feet on the ground, thanks."

He laughed and grinned wickedly. "Chicken. Come on, you can fly, can't you?"

Sarah nodded. "Madam Hooch taught me. Doesn't mean I particularly like it."

"Come on…" Harry implored. The twins were fast approaching, and they had an evil look in their eyes.

Sarah quickly mounted the broom, not wanting to be on the receiving end of one of their pranks, and sprung up into the air. The broom wavered for a moment; Sarah hadn't practiced since Madam Hooch had first taught her, before stabilising. George muttered a quick levitation spell which set the two rings facing each other about forty meters apart, before Fred tossed the quaffle at Sarah.

"Let's see what you've got, Aussie." He said with a grin.

She grinned in reply, accepting the challenge. "Alright then. How's this?" She edged the broom forward by leaning forward, and hurled it towards the nearest ring. She watched in satisfaction as it soared through the centre. She pulled up on the front of the broom, bringing it to a stop, and smirk triumphantly at Fred.

George crowed in delight. "Oh, you think you're good? Can you do it against another player?" He retrieved the ball and threw it back to her, before placing himself firmly between her and the goals.

She tried to weave past the boy on her broom, but each time he intercepted her. Instead she tried to throw it past him, but it took her three tries to actually get it past him, and a further three to get it into the goal. When she had managed she grinned in victory, choosing to ignore the five times he had either intercepted it, or it had missed its mark completely.

Ron chose that moment to speak up from his place on the side lines. "Let's make a game of it. You three-" He gestured to Harry, Ginny and Sarah. "Versus us three." He gestured to the two remaining boys.

"But we-" Fred started.

"Wanted to play on-"

"Sarah's team." He finished.

Harry rolled his eyes, and Sarah smirked. "I like the teams as they are." She said, earning a hurtful glance from Fred.

George half hung from his broom, clutching his chest. "My lady, you wound us!"

She snorted in reply. "Get over it. We'll change the teams around next game, okay?"

Throughout the game, which the Weasley boys won by a landslide, Sarah weaved and turned her broom as though she had been flying her entire life. She allowed a brief smile to grace her face as she clutched at the quaffle, swooping past Fred and George to toss it towards the goal. She narrowed her eyes as Ron intercepted the throw, passed it on to one of the twins, who promptly made it past Ginny to score another goal.

She lost herself in the game, allowing the light heartedness of the situation to distract her from the events of the previous few weeks. Fred and George swooped around her, crowing in victory. "Ha ha! Now don't you wish-"

"You had been-"

"On our team?" George finished with a smirk.

Sarah rolled her eyes. "Just because we lost this time doesn't mean we would have won were I on your team. Ron's the one that stopped most of the goals, remember."

The twins were unfazed, and as Sarah watched they disappeared, only to reappear on their brooms behind Sarah. She spun around to catch them grinning, before they disappeared again. Sarah spied them a good one hundred meters away; her jaw dropped. Hermione shook her head. "You'd expect they'd get sick of aparating all over the place after a year and a half…"

Sarah clicked after Hermione said that. "You mean that's aparating? Who let those two have an aparating licence?"

Harry snickered. "The Ministry." Sarah nodded knowingly.

There was a call from Mrs Weasley and they all headed inside for a warm breakfast.


	10. Chapter 9

Chapter 9:

The time had flown at the Burrow, and a week had almost passed when their cover was blown completely and wholly. That was to say, Ginny had finally realised something was up.

It had begun when Ginny became suspicious of them on their first day at the Burrow. The fact that everyone there treated Sarah and Alanna like they had already met only made it worse. And somehow she remembered Sarah saying, on her very first day at Hogwarts, that she was a terrible flyer. Sarah had caught on to Quidditch entirely too quickly for a terrible flyer, and that only made Ginny more suspicious of the duo.

All of this and more led her to approach her brother the day before they were due to pick up Hermione at Diagon Alley. "Ron." She began hesitantly.

He looked up from the game of Wizard's Chess, where his queen was beating Harry's over the head with a pike. "Yeah?"

She cleared her throat. "Can I have a word with you… In private?" She shot an apologetic look at Harry.

Ron shrugged and stood. "Make it quick. I'm in the middle of a game." And followed her into the corridor.

She looked around surreptitiously before speaking in a whisper. "I think there's something strange about Sarah and Professor Trebond. Remember, Fred and George acted like they'd already met, and so have mum and dad, and she said she was a bad flyer, but she was really good and-"

Ron cut her off, scoffing loudly. "Come on, Gin! Get real, bloody hell…" He shook his head, his face turning red with a blush. He hurried back into the living room, back to Harry and his game of Wizard's Chess.

She stared after him, before letting out a 'hmpf!' of indignation. Sarah trotted down the stairs before noticing the young red head standing there, looking angry. "Ginny, what's the matter?"

The red head threw up her hands and stormed up the stairs, ignoring Sarah's query. Sarah blinked in surprise before walking into the living room. "What's wrong with Ginny?" She asked Ron and Harry, who were talking quietly, their game of chess forgotten.

Ron shot up like a bolt when he heard her. "Bloody hell, Sarah! Don't sneak up on us like that! We have a problem; Ginny's suspicious of you two. She just told me she thought there was something weird about you…"

Sarah sighed. "It was just a matter of time… Is there any parchment nearby? If she's suspicious then I need to get permission from Dumbledore to spill the beans…"

Ron directed her to the pile of parchment that sat on a stool next to the chess board, and she climbed the stairs to the room she shared with Alanna and Ginny, surreptitiously ignoring the other girl's stare as she retrieved a quill from her knapsack. She made her way down the stairs and into the kitchen, sitting down at the table after a quick greeting to Alanna and Molly Weasley, who were talking over cups of tea.

"What are you doing?" Alanna asked.

Sarah grimaced. "Ginny's getting suspicious. I'm writing to Professor Dumbledore, to get permission to tell her everything. She just confronted Ron about how weird I am." Alanna's mouth twitched upwards, the only sign of her amusement. Sarah narrowed her eyes. "It's not funny. What happens if someone dangerous finds out? It could force Voldemort into a confrontation, and that'll be dangerous for everyone."

A small gasp from the doorway gave away Ginny's presence, followed shortly by thumping as the girl ran up the stairs. There was a bang that signalled a slammed door, and Sarah groaned before looking towards Alanna. "We really need to make sure doors are closed before we start talking about sensitive topics, don't we? I'll go speak to her…"

Alanna shook her head. "She probably thinks you're some sort of Death Eater or something. Molly should go."

The older Weasley nodded. "I'll get her down here and you can explain everything to her."

Sarah sighed and sat back in her chair. "Alright then… I never realised how hard this undercover stuff was…"

Molly left the room, and Sarah went to retrieve Harry and Ron. Fred, George and Arthur were all at work, and when Molly returned with Ginny in tow she noticed the other four people sitting there, around the kitchen table, looking serious.

She took no notice of her brother or long time crush, instead glaring accusingly at Sarah and Alanna. "Who _are_ you? What are you doing at Hogwarts?"

Sarah grimaced. "I'm at Hogwarts to protect Harry from Voldemort, and eventually help him defeat Voldemort. I'm… um… not from around here." She finished, hoping the red head would let sleeping dogs lie. There was no luck to be had for Sarah, however.

"What? What do you mean, you aren't from around here? You're from Australia, we already know that… is your name even Sarah?" Ginny asked, and edge to her voice.

"Yes my name is Sarah." Sarah sighed in exasperation. "And yes I'm from Australia. The thing is… not _this_ Australia. I'm from another dimension." She steeled herself for the disbelief.

"Huh?" Ginny's face creased in confusion, accusation drained from her eyes to be replaced with doubt. "What do you mean?"

Sarah sighed. "There are other realities out there, one of which is my original home dimension. A very boring place, I must say. Another one is Alanna's home dimension, where I learnt everything I know of magic and defence. Who knows how many other dimensions there are out there?"

Ginny processed the information without so much as a blink, then rounded on her brother, mother and Harry. "You all knew, didn't you? And Fred and George and Dad, they all knew too… Who else? Hermione? The Professors?"

Ron held up his hands in self defence. "Hermione overheard Sarah talking on the first day… If it wasn't for that then we probably never would have found out." Her glare didn't lessen.

"How did you come to be here?" She asked.

Sarah cleared her throat, looking to Molly for support. When she received none she sighed. "Well… you've heard of the gods, right? Well, they aren't myths. They're real. They sent me to Tortall- that's Alanna's home- to do a mission. When I finished that I had about a month's rest before they sent us here. We arrived two months before the semester started, and I went into training to catch up with the sixth years."

Alanna cleared her throat and stood. "Perhaps it would be better if we introduced ourselves properly…" She bowed. "I am Sir Alanna of Trebond, Olau and Pirates' Swoop."

Sarah smirked. "She's forgetting a few things. She's Lady Knight Alanna of Trebond, Olau and Pirates' Swoop, the Lioness and King's Champion, former Shaman of the Bloody Hawk Tribe, a very pronounced Bazhir tribe." She ignored Alanna's glare, stood, and bowed low towards Ginny. "And I am Lady Knight Sarah of Greenstone, and Adept of the Mithran Way."

Alanna grinned evilly. "She's also the Messenger for the God and Shang in training."

Ginny's eyes widened as she stared. Alanna snickered and Sarah groaned. "Now you've done it. You've broken her." She said as Ginny continued to stare. Sarah sighed. "I better tell Dumbledore we need to spill the beans. Now that you know, Ginny, you can't tell anyone, okay?"

The youngest red head in the room nodded seriously. "My lips are sealed… Wow, so you're going to beat Voldemort? That's… Wow…"

Sarah shook her head, a wry grin on her face. "I'm going for a walk. I expect you to act normally when I get back, okay?" She placed a hand under the other girl's chin, moving her head up and down in a nod. "Good."

Sarah tucked her hands into her pockets after retrieving her coat from the coat rack at the door, and ducked her head against the cold. A slight drift had started that morning, but Sarah paid it no heed, even when her nose went numb. She squinted against a cold wind that started blowing. _Maybe it's not the best time for a walk…_Never the less she persisted, making her way to the top of her favourite hill; the one she had watched the sunrise from every morning that week.

There was a loud crack behind her, and Sarah sighed. "About time one of you showed up." She muttered before turning around. She noticed a tall, ivory woman who's skin almost blended with the snow. Bowing low, she let a quick smile grace her face. "Great Mother, as always, it is an honour to see you."

Her eerie voice sent chills down Sarah's spine more than the cold weather. "And it is a pleasure to see you, Messenger."

Sarah shook her head. "Sarah, please. I'm so sick of that title."

A half grin graced the Goddess' face. Sarah turned her face towards the wind, allowing it to sweep stray hairs out of her face. After a few moments she asked in a murmur, "So what brings you here? A progress check, or is it something more important?"

"A progress check, nothing more. I see you've integrated yourself quite skilfully. The Lioness is doing well?"

Sarah glanced at the Goddess. "Why don't you ask her yourself? I'm sure she'd appreciate the visit from someone from the 'old country'."

She saw a smile on the Great Mother Goddess' face. "I will, when I am through with you. Perhaps a visit will help your youngest friend with her faith in your cause."

Sarah laughed, but her expression sobered when she heard the next thing the Goddess had to say. "How are you, my daughter?"

Sarah coughed into her hand. "Great. Never better. Why do you ask?"

There was a touch of reproach to her voice when the Mother replied. "Are you sure? There is no weakness in showing emotion. Your friends wish to help, yet you push them away at every turn. You will admit you are in pain, when pressed hard enough, but you do not let them help heal your pain."

Sarah's eyes narrowed. "I don't need any advice. I'm not here to heal old wounds, I'm here to deal with a problem of yours."

The Great Mother's chuckle echoed in her ears. "But can you do both, when you are distracted so by the old wounds? What will happen if, perchance, Voldemort brings Dementors upon you in battle? Surely, the fight will be lost if your wounds are not healed."

Sarah clenched her teeth. "If he brings Dementors upon me in battle I'll figure out a way to defeat them without the Patronus Charm. That's the only thing from this dimension that affects them. Maybe my Gift will do a better job. Who knows!" She spun to face away from the immortal.

"My dear, have you ever wondered how the first Messenger for the Gods died? You see, the pattern has always been the same. A Messenger is taken from your dimension to the reigning power in Alanna's dimension, for training. Then they are sent to wherever they are needed most. In the case of your predecessor, he was trained in Scanra, and also brought here. Before he could be properly introduced to this world, however, he was attacked."

Sarah shrugged. She tried to sound disinterested, but she had a sneaking suspicion as to where the conversation was going. "So?"

"He was attacked by Dementors. He tried to attack them with the Gift, in which he was more powerful than yourself, I must add. It had no effect. None whatsoever. The only attack that is successful in deterring a Dementor is the Patronus Charm. Now, Sarah, do you understand why you must allow your friends to heal your wounds?"

Sarah glared venomously at the Great Mother Goddess. "And just how do I do that? Open up, cry in their arms? Not going to happen."

The Goddess laid a hand on her shoulder; it sent both chills and a tremor of fire down her arm and through her body. "All you need to do is allow them to help you make happy memories. Did you enjoy learning to play Quidditch? Did you _allow_ yourself to enjoy it?"

Sarah looked away, before answering, "Yeah, I guess… but not a day goes by that I don't worry about what tomorrow will bring. Another attack, Dementors, Death Eaters, or maybe Voldemort this time? I guess… it's just that I don't share everyone else's confidence in my abilities."

The Mother smiled knowingly. "My dear, you suffer from a low opinion of yourself. As a matter of fact, I am also here to deliver a warning to you… My sister, Shakith, has foreseen that people are getting closer to the truth. You are held under closer scrutiny at the Ministry than you anticipated. If you are not careful, your secret will soon be revealed, and that will make your mission that much harder."

Sarah winced. "Great… I've already blown my cover twice… There's not a snowflake's chance in hell that I'll be able to keep it a secret much longer, if they're already onto me."

The Great Mother shook her head, humour evident on her face. "Do not sell yourself short, my daughter. Our time grows short; I will visit with the Lioness for a time, and then leave you to your devices. Good luck; our blessings are with you."

PAGE BREAK!!!

Sarah waited a few moments, giving the Goddess enough time to visit with Alanna without intrusion, and took the slight hill down to the Burrow at a trot. When she entered the cozy kitchen she noticed several very white faces, and a thoughtful looking Alanna.

"Had your visit, have you?" She asked, almost nonchalantly.

Alanna nodded. "Yes… I don't like the fact someone is growing closer to our little secret; not one bit. That Fudge character seemed very duplicitous…"

Sarah laughed. "Since when do you use words like duplicitous?" She asked, earning a glare from Alanna. She turned to the other people in the kitchen. "So… any and all doubts completely gone? No one thinks I'm a Death Eater toying with Harry?"

The others all looked shocked, but Ginny flushed with embarrassment. "Sarah, I'm-"

Sarah shook her head. "Don't worry about it. You just haven't had time to get used to the idea. Harry's lucky to have you- and everyone else- to watch his back so closely. Of course, Madeye's probably enough of a guard for anyone…"

She trailed off at the sound of a pot boiling over. Molly Weasley recovered some of her colour; enough to say, "That'll be the potatoes. Dinner's almost ready. Ron, set the table. Your brothers and father should be home soon."

Sarah sat next to Alanna and murmured just loud enough for the other knight to hear, "She made quite the impression, did she?"

Alanna snickered and nodded. "Take a look at Ron, he hasn't moved since she arrived. I think he may have fainted."

Sarah snickered and shook her head. "You gotta hand it to the Gods, they sure know how to make an impression. Imagine, being brought up thinking they were myths, and having one pop in for a spot of tea…" The image brought laughter to her lips, causing everyone to stop what they were doing and look at her. She held up her hands defensively. "Sorry, I was just thinking about the entrance she must have made. I imagine it was quite amusing." She shut her mouth when they all turned to glare at her, holding her hands up in defence.

Fred and George chose that opportune moment to sweep through the door, brief cases in their hands. "Hello family dearest!"

"We had a wonderful day-" Fred added.

"At the store today-" George continued.

"And have brought treats home to celebrate." Fred finished with an evil grin.

Sarah shook her head. "Not touching it with a ten foot pole, whatever it is. I like my skin colour, hair colour, fingernail length and bowel movements the way they are, thankyou very much."

They looked hopefully around the table, looking for volunteers. When they received negative looks from everyone seated there they sighed loudly. "Really, we had hoped you hadn't spoiled Sarah against us. Now who will we test our latest inventions against?"

Sarah gaped. "Wow Fred, that must've been the longest sentence I've ever heard you form. Anyway, your stories at Grimmauld place about what you've done to Ron made me wary about tasting anything you give me."

Fred gasped and George turned pale. At least she thought she had the names right. "Sarah! You've just-"

"Ginny's here-"

"Blown your cover!"

Sarah laughed. "She's a smart one, your sister. She figured that something was up. Then she listened at the door until I said something incriminating… she knows the whole story now."

The twins clutched their chests, feigning heart attacks. "You scared us for a minute!"

The conversation continued, and when Arthur Weasley returned home they informed him of his daughter's new knowledge. He was proud of her investigative skills, and the rest of the evening was spent in light hearted banter, and before they knew it Molly was ushering all the students up to bed, Sarah included.

She fell into bed for a deep, dreamless sleep, awaking in the morning to find the sun poring through the window casting a golden glow upon the room.

PAGE BREAK!!!

Sarah trotted down the stairs, pulling her hair up as she walked. She sat down to the table just as Alanna emerged from outside, a distasteful look on her face. Sarah smirked. "Too cold?" She asked innocently.

Alanna narrowed her eyes before nodding. She gestured with her chin to the bundle in her arms. "I had to retrieve Pig when he flew into the window. You have a letter from Dumbledore."

Sarah ripped open the envelope and unfolded the letter, scanning in quickly before tossing it to the knight, a rueful grin on her face. The letter had detailed a suggestion to tell the youngest Weasley about Sarah's actual position at Hogwarts. When Alanna read the letter she burst out laughing. Molly, who was bustling into the kitchen at the time, frowned in confusion until the other red head tossed her the letter.

Molly Weasley shook her head when she read the letter, and hustled around the kitchen, preparing a breakfast of oatmeal, sausages, bacon and eggs. The boys, seemingly roused by the smells wafting upstairs, tottered down the stairs, still half asleep. Ginny followed closely, still in her pyjamas, prompting Sarah to cough lightly. "Um…. If you don't all get ready soon, we're going to be late picking Hermione up."

Ron took a look at the clock, his sleepy gaze widening in surprise when he noticed the time. "Blimey, she's right!" He raced upstairs to get dressed, followed closely by Harry and Ginny. Fred and George, who were needed at work, were dressed and sitting at the table. When the boys came down the stairs a second time they growled.

"Come on Ronnikins! We're hungry!" Fred said.

Ron glared and sat down at the table. "Ginny's not here yet, cut me a break!"

George smirked. "But we like her, Ronnikins."

Sarah shook her head and ignored the ensuing bickering, which Molly tried to police.

When breakfast had finished, they all stood and gathered cloaks from the cloak rack. Molly led them to the fireplace and held out a pot containing floo powder. Sarah took a handful and threw it into the flame. "Diagon Alley!"

She leapt into the flame, and then out of the way as Alanna came tumbling out of the receiving fireplace, followed by the Weasleys and finally Harry. Fred and George brushed off their jackets before giving the group a jaunty wave and saying, "Well it's off to work with us!" In unison.

Sarah turned to Molly. "So, where are we meeting Hermione?"

"Flourish and Blotts." At the answer Sarah groaned.

"Does she ever quit?" She asked, to which both Ron and Harry shook their heads.

Sarah sighed, exasperated, and gestured for the Weasleys to lead the way. When they found that Hermione didn't wait outside the store for them, it was Sarah's bright idea to look inside for the witch. They found her in the Ancient Runes section of the store, engrossed in a volume almost as thick as her head. Sarah was charged with luring the girl out of the store; Harry and Ron found it too damaging to their reputations to be seen in the store for too long.

When Sarah pulled Hermione forcibly into the main section of the store they overheard a voice dripping with malice. "Well, Weasley, here for the second hand book sale? Hoping to get next year's books cheap are you?"

Sarah closed her eyes and sighed. "Why don't I ever get a break?" When she opened her eyes Hermione was glaring angrily and starting forward, towards the source of the voice. Sarah grimaced and held the girl back. She took a peak around the bookcase and swore. "Great, the older one's out there. Hold on, let me handle this."

Sarah strode out from behind the bookcase and grinned brightly. "Malfoy! Just the person I wanted to see; run into any brick walls lately?" There was a snicker; Sarah thought it might have been from Harry or Ron.

Malfoy tried to look angry, but only managed a fearful wince. Sarah turned her attention to the older blonde who rested his hand on an expensive looking cane. She extended her hand towards him. "Hi, my name's Sarah, I believe we've already met? What happened to your leg… it wasn't hurt, was it?" When he merely looked at her hand with disdain she grabbed his other one and clasped it in her own, pumping it up and down firmly. She turned to the people gathered behind her and by way of explanation said, "You have to teach these savages some manners, they just don't understand what to do otherwi-"

Sarah was interrupted as a hand crashed upon her jaw. She staggered slightly, grabbing the tender bone and massaging it. She smirked at the older Malfoy, looking smug. "Learn that from your son, did you? Careful, you might catch _mudblood__ germs_."

He sneered. "You forget your place. Your time will come, sooner than you think." With that he spun on his heel and turned, leading the younger boy outside with him while Sarah massaged her jaw.

Hermione appeared at her side in an instant. "Are you alright? Did he hit you hard?"

Sarah nodded but her grin never faltered. "He hit me hard, but I guarantee that it'll be hurting him more. He hit with his knuckles; I'd be surprised if he didn't break some in the process. What do I always teach you lot?"

Hermione joined her in grinning. "Never target the face."

Alanna's exasperated sigh interrupted them. "You should have broken his legs; then he'd need an expensive cane like that to walk."

Harry was the only one who appeared troubled. "What did he mean, your time would come, sooner than you think?"

Sarah shrugged. "Probably an empty threat. If it's not, well I'll have to deal with Malfoy Senior the way I deal with Malfoy Junior- painfully." With that the group left for the floo network, prepared to return home with Hermione as the group's ranks were completed.


	11. Chapter 10

Chapter 10:

The rest of the holidays at the Burrow passed quickly for Sarah. The only time she felt uncomfortable was on Christmas day, when Mrs Weasley had a jumper with a large 'S' knitted onto it for her, and another jumper for Alanna. Before any of the students knew it, it was time to go back to Hogwarts.

On the morning of their departure Sarah was sitting quietly, out of the way in the kitchen, her bags sitting against the wall. Mrs Weasley was bustling around the house. "Ron, do you have your dress robes?"

"Yes mum!" Came the reply from upstairs.

Her eyes narrowed. "Really? Well what do I have here in my hands?" She held a bundle of robes, and brandished them at the empty stairs. Ron came down the stairs at a run, grabbing the robes off of his mother before racing back up the stairs.

Sarah smirked. "Are they always this organised?"

Hermione shook her head as she entered the kitchen. "Normally they're worse." Her bags were sitting next to Sarah's, and had been since the night before. Ginny was lugging her bags down the stairs followed closely by Harry. "Now all we're waiting on is Ron."

Fred and George overheard her as they entered the room, a large grin crept over each of the boys' faces. "Don't worry about Ronnikins-"

"We'll get him down here." George's grin took on an evil quality, and the two boys disappeared. Two pops from upstairs suggested they had aparated to the second floor; a loud curse from Ron confirmed it.

Not two minutes later Ron came trudging down the stairs, looking as though he was under siege, with the twins aparating and disaparating around him. First Fred was in front of him, with George behind, then they switched places, all the while harassing him. "Hurry up, Ronnikins!"

"Sarah's been waiting-"

"All morning!"

"And Hermione too!"

Ron glared at the twins one final time before placing his bags on the pile. Mrs Weasley looked her children over, adjusting collars and tugging at robes. She turned to Harry, Hermione, and to Sarah, to the girl's surprise, and gave them the same treatment. When all of the students were looking satisfactory, she led them to the fireplace, and they all flooed to Diagon Alley.

"Alright, we'll walk to King's Cross Station. Has everyone got their bags?" They all nodded. "Good."

With that they set out, lugging heavy bags behind them as they trudged towards the train station and Platform 9 ¾, where they would find the Hogwart's Express waiting for them. When they arrived Sarah stared at the brick wall, a grimace on her lips as she shook her head. "I'll never get used to running at a brick wall. I feel like I should be colliding with something…"

Alanna nodded. "I know, it's weird…"

Sarah shrugged, an easy grin on her face, and she threw herself at the wall. When she landed on the other side she quickly stepped out of the way, rather than risk collision with one of the others, and waited until they were all across. They dropped their bags at the depot. Sarah watched as Mrs Weasley hugged Ron, Ginny, Hermione and Harry tightly. Sarah was surprised when the mother Weasley turned and embraced her fiercely. "Take care of yourself, dear. And don't let Ronald get into too many fights."

Sarah nodded, shocked at the contact, before it was suddenly gone. She blushed and shuffled towards the train, mounting the steps two at a time. When she was on the train she made her way to an abandoned compartment, where she was joined by Alanna, Ginny, Hermione, Ron and Harry. The compartment became cramped, and Sarah pressed herself upon the wall as Neville and Luna Lovegood, a girl that Sarah had only met once or twice, squeezed their way into the compartment.

Alanna grimaced at the sardine situation, even as the other six didn't seem to notice. Neville groaned as Draco Malfoy appeared at the door. Sarah glared at the boy, before saying in an icy voice, "Boo." He scampered away from the door, and Sarah sat back in satisfaction.

Luna looked impressed. "He looked like he had Nargles chasing after him. How did you do that?"

Sarah shrugged. "I beat him up a couple of times… Um, what are Nargles?"

Before the girl could launch into an explanation, Neville spoke up. "Do you know, they've seeded every compartment on the train with a Slytherin? You lot were lucky to get this compartment before they showed up."

Sarah rolled her eyes. "How very immature." She picked up a book about the Care of Magical Creatures, opening it to the page where she had left off- blast ended skrewts.

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

The second semester of school started well, and Sarah was more focused on her mission than ever. She studied harder than usual, and completed her homework before the training classes were scheduled to begin, leaving her evenings completely free; she spent the time reading up on other spells, things that might be useful.

Unfortunately, the regularity of the situation was interrupted one breakfast on the Wednesday of the third week, when Cornelius Fudge, flanked by two Aurors, Tonks and Kingsley, flung open the doors to the dining hall, causing Sarah to pause when her spoon was halfway to her mouth. She sent a quick glance at Alanna; the red head had no idea what this was about either. The Minister stopped about two meters from Sarah.

"Sarah Gibson, we'd like to have a talk with you, if we may. You too, Professor Trebond."

Sarah frowned in confusion. "What about, Minister?"

He narrowed his eyes. "We had a look into your past; you say you're from the Ministry College, in Australia? There is no such thing. We'd like to question you on ties to He Who Must Not Be Named."

Sarah blinked. "You think I'm in league with Voldemort?" There were several winces at the name, and the hall was silent.

"Yes. If you do not come peaceably, these Aurors will escort you from the premises with force."

Sarah glanced at Tonks and Kingsley, trying to get the measure of the situation. She sighed and stood, throwing her napkin down on the half finished plate of food. "This couldn't have waited until the end of breakfast, could it?" She saw a twinkle in Tonks' eyes and suppressed a grin.

The Minister wasn't smiling. "What shall it be, the easy way, or the hard way?" Alanna had appeared at her shoulder.

Sarah could see no other alternative, so she sighed. "The easy way, I guess…"

"Ahem." Dumbledore stood at the dais, a hard look on his face. "May I ask what the charges are?"

Fudge smiled thinly. "It seems these two got past your defences, Albus. They are not who they say they are."

Dumbledore regarded Sarah and Alanna closely. "And who do they say they are?"

Fudge looked confused. "They say they are transfers from Australia…"

Dumbledore looked mildly amused at the situation. "Perhaps that is who you think they are, but it is _I_ who said they were transfers from Australia. They have committed no wrong; they did not lie to you about who they were."

Fudge turned to Sarah. "Well then, who are you?"

Sarah flashed an alarmed glance at Dumbledore. He sighed. "They are guests here at my behest. Sarah wished to see what life as a student would be like, and I was happy to oblige. Now if there are no further questions…"

"Is that true?" Fudge asked Alanna.

She shrugged. "Sure is."

"Prove it." He countered.

Once again, Dumbledore spoke up. "How, Cornelius? They have been visiting, is that not proof enough?"

He narrowed his eyes once again and shook his head. "No. You'll be coming with us. Nymphadora! Kingsley!"

Tonks and Kingsley looked like there was a bad taste in their mouths, even as they levelled their wands at Sarah and Alanna. Again, Dumbledore spoke. "Ahem! A word, in private, Cornelius?"

The Minister looked enflamed. "Not this time, Dumbledore! They are going to be questioned about a connection to You Know Who. We think they might have been the ones to let the Death Eaters in when they attacked."

Sarah gaped. "Nobody _let them in._ They blasted their way in. You know, with wands!"

Fudge shook his head. "You can tell it all to the interrogators later, young miss. Right now you _are_ coming with us."

Sarah looked from Alanna to Dumbledore to Tonks, who's eyes were filled with apology. Sarah grinned sadly at her and held her arms up, in submission. Dumbledore made his way down the dais and across the hall, ignoring the stares of the students in the halls. Sarah saw Harry tightening his grip on his wand; Sarah shot him a warning glance. _There is no way I'm letting you attack the Minister for Magic, you twat._ She thought fiercely in his direction. He seemed to get the message; his hand loosened.

Dumbledore stood between Fudge, Sarah and Alanna. "If you really must know why they are here, I shall tell you. In private."

Fudge shook his head. "Either tell me right now or they _will_ be taken with force."

Dumbledore sighed, and Sarah noticed how old he looked. "Fine. They are part of a secret group of individuals who train in wandless defence. Sarah is a prodigy in the arts, and I invited them here for two reasons. The first is to prepare the students in case they are caught without a wand. The second is to protect Harry from Voldemort; perhaps she will do a better job than the Ministry did last year, hmm?"

Sarah winced at the murmurs that spread throughout the hall. She knew by the time what Dumbledore had said in a quiet voice reached the end of the table, the entire lie would be blown out of proportion. Fudge looked confused. "What?"

"You heard me, Minister. Sarah is here at my request, to protect Harry from Voldemort. The deception was a necessity; we did not want Voldemort to know that he had such an esteemed guard."

Sarah grinned brightly at the Minister. "Am I still under arrest? If I am, can we swing by MacDonalds? I'm still hungry…"

The reminder of his failure to believe the truth the previous year had obviously hurt his pride, for the next moment Fudge was shaking his head. "No, you're not under arrest. Nymphadora, Kingsley, stand down. We'll be having a talk, you and I, Albus, about the correct chain of command on issues like this."

The headmaster played his hand beautifully, allowing just one more jab at the Minister's confidence. "My friend, we tried that last year."

The Minister swept out of the hall, followed closely by Tonks and Kingsley. Sarah winked at the metamorphagus before turning to Professor Dumbledore. "So, cover's blown eh?"

He smiled lightly. "Perhaps you should finish your breakfast before it gets cold. Afterwards, perhaps an explanation of our situation?"

Sarah nodded, trying to think up a story that corroborated Dumbledore's explanation. She ignored the questions of the students, instead focusing on her bacon and eggs, which had gone lukewarm when the Minister interrupted. Grimacing, she shoved the plate aside and stood, the action mirrored by Alanna, who was sitting back at the teacher's table. Sarah strode up to the dais, and was joined in standing at the front of the hall by Alanna and Dumbledore.

Sarah opened her mouth to speak. "I'm really sorry I had to deceive you all. I tried to be as honest as possible, without blowing my cover, but it wasn't always easy. For any of you who didn't hear Professor Dumbledore, or who heard a completely different version of what he said, this is the full story. I'm actually here at his request, to teach any of you who wished to learn how to defend yourself without a wand, and also here to defend Harry Potter from Voldemort." She ignored the winces from the students as she said his name.

Dumbledore chose this moment to speak up. "Sarah has been in training her entire life, training in the arts she has tried to teach you. When the events at the Ministry of Magic last year occurred, I enlisted the help of a friend of mine, who has ties to Alanna and Sarah's society, to develop a guard that Voldemort would not be suspicious of. This society exists separately from our own, much like our society exists separately from the muggle society. They agreed to send Sarah, who immediately went into training to bring herself to the level of a sixth year. The teachers provided the training, so yes they did know the circumstances of Sarah's stay. I must stress to you all that this is of the utmost importance; not a word of it must leave this school. Now, everyone, continue your breakfast, and goodluck with your studies."

He turned to Sarah and Alanna, murmuring, "I daresay this will be in the Daily Prophet by tomorrow morning."

Sarah smirked. "You think? If not, at least the parents will know by morning and the Prophet will know by the next day. And so will Voldemort." She sighed. "I suppose I might as well abandon the 'I'm a good little student' act."

Dumbledore nodded. "We shall have quarters arranged for you near the Gryffindor common room. Would it be acceptable to share with Alanna, or should we have separate quarters arranged for her, also?"

Sarah shook her head. "Sharing's fine." She turned and walked down the Gryffindor table, taking her seat next to Hermione. Dean and Seamus, along with most of the table, were staring at her.

She blinked at them. "Do I have something in my teeth?" That broke the spell and they started badgering her with questions. Harry, Hermione, Ron and Ginny all tried to run interference, but every now and then a first- or second- year student would appear at her shoulder, with questions of their own. Sarah waited until her friends had finished breakfast before standing with them and escaping quickly.

When they were back in the common room they hastened to grab their books, ready to run to the relative safety of class. Sarah just watched, an idea forming in her mind. When Hermione asked whether she was coming she shook her head. "There's no point pretending I'm just a student anymore. Anyway, I've been slack with my training; I need to get myself back up to the standards I was at when I left Corus."

Alanna spoke from the doorway; the Fat Lady had just granted her entrance. "That's a good idea. Are you going to train your Gift, too?"

Sarah nodded seriously. "I'm no where near where I was when I left. Will you help?"

The red head grinned. "Of course. Are we still running lessons?"

Sarah thought carefully before answering. "Yes. We need to, or our cover will be compromised… _again._ This is ridiculous, we really suck at this undercover stuff."

Alanna laughed. "That's George's area of expertise, not mine. Don't blame me."

Sarah held up her hands. "Wasn't blaming you, just lamenting about how much we _suck_."

The others left for class shortly afterwards, and Alanna and Sarah made their way to the Room of Requirement. After pacing in front of the bare wall, thinking of a peaceful room with no distractions, they entered to find a medium sized room lit by candles. There they sat down, crosslegged, and began to meditate.

They sat in that position for over an hour, before rousing themselves and stretching. Sarah rolled her neck as she asked, "So, just what are you going to teach me?"

Alanna shrugged. "I don't know just yet. You already know most of the war magic me and Numair knew, but there are a few spells for cracking the earth that I _don't_ want to teach you here." Sarah grinned. Alanna continued with a small smile of her own. "I'll teach you the theory for it, so if you need it in battle you might be able to figure it out without practice. I wouldn't suggest it though."

Sarah nodded seriously. "Not likely; I can't imagine Death Eaters running fast enough to accidentally run into a large crevice… they'd probably just aparate out of it, anyway."

Alanna grinned. "If they could concentrate past the falling to their deaths… Anyway, I also know some thread magic, not much but it can be very useful. Then there's a spell to completely immobilize a group of enemies… but if you don't have a physical focus on which to attach your magic you'll be in trouble. It's a very _sticky_ spell." Alanna hit her forehead in exasperation. "I completely forgot about trying to teach you healing magic."

Sarah's jaw dropped. In all of the excitement of Death Eater and Dementor attacks and the holidays, they had forgotten about the predicament Sarah faced when she required healing. "Should we try that first, then?"

Alanna nodded, but winced. "Do you have anything that needs healing? Any scratches, or bruises…?"

Sarah rolled up her sleeves, looking for any ailments. She found a small nick from a thorny plant she had accidentally walked into a few days prior; she showed it to Alanna, who screwed her face up. "That'll have to do, I guess… Alright, the basis of healing with the Gift is to restore the body to its natural condition. Your body wants to get rid of the scratch, so it will, eventually. You'll just be speeding up the process. Take a few deep breaths and focus on the wound." Sarah complied. Alanna, watching her with one hand on the ember at her throat continued. "Alright, now imagine it healing. Will it to heal."

Sarah tried, she really did. She focused on the wound closing up, sealing to form unbroken skin. She focused for a long time, until Alanna laid a hand on her shoulder. "I don't think it's working." She said, a slight frown on her face.

Sarah sighed. "So I don't have the healing Gift… damn, that could've been useful. Oh well, how about some thread magic?"

Alanna stood and stretched her underused muscles, before turning back to Sarah. "Do you have any thread?" Sarah shook her head. "Then we'll wait until tomorrow for that. We should probably pack our bags, I imagine Dumbledore won't delay in having proper quarters arranged for us."

Sarah nodded and stood, shaking the stiffness out of her limbs. "Alright then. I had better tell Hermione at lunch… I imagine she won't be too happy with me…"

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

Sarah was right, Hermione hadn't been too happy with Sarah for not telling her. She hadn't spoken with her for the rest of the day, only forgiving the other girl at their Defence Without A Wand lesson the next day. All of the Slytherins had dropped out, to which Sarah grinned brightly.

"Dude, if I had known that all it would take to get rid of the Slytherins would be to blow my cover, I would have done it earlier!" She said to Alanna, who returned her grin.

Sarah turned to the students, saying, "Alright, so I'm not actually an exchange student, but oh well. I'm still me, and now that the Slytherins are gone we can have a nice, easy lesson, right?"

All of the students arrayed before her sighed in relief. Sarah smirked at Alanna. "Okay, so warm up first." She led the students in the warm up before pairing them off. "Why don't we try some sparring, to begin with? This is minimal contact, hit fast but _not hard_. You'll learn not to; if you hit hard so will your opponent, and you don't want that. At all."

She refereed the sparring matches one at a time, declaring points and winners as she went. It came as no surprise when Ron, Harry and Hermione each won their bouts against Seamus, Dean and a Hufflepuff girl named Sidney. At the end of the lesson, Sarah stretched languidly, watching as her students each trickled through the door of the room they still used for training.

The group of students who knew the full story about Sarah stayed behind, they had taken to adding a second training session at the end, since they knew how useful the arts could be. Amelia, Ginny and Fernando showed up scant minutes later; the two first years having a passion for learning self defence, the fifth year looking to improve her Gift. Neville stayed behind also; he had mastered conjuring fire shortly after the Death Eater attack; Sarah was teaching him how to form shield spells; with his Gift he might be able to stave off killing curses, if the shields were strong enough.

They split into three groups; Amelia, Harry, Ron and Fernando pooled their knowledge; Sarah had been teaching the first and sixth years different techniques so when they met in the evening they had something to teach each other. Sarah set Hermione practicing her scrying spells while she taught Neville shielding spells. The other girl had trouble scrying for anything- her need for solid knowledge hindered her progress, whereas the lanky boy had no trouble scrying in mirrors or bowls of water.

Alanna had taken to tutoring the youngest Weasley in her Gift; it was something the girl excelled at. She was teaching her invisibility spells; a favourite of the students at the Royal University, and one of the first things they learned.

After she set Neville practicing his shielding spells Sarah strode over to where the un-Gifted students were practicing. She joined their practice, immersing herself in the familiarity of the moves, losing herself to the fluidity as she let her mind drift to her mission.

_I need to find Voldemort. With the revelation of who and what I am in this morning's Daily Prophet, maybe he'll seek me out._ Her eyes glazed over. _If he does I hope I'm ready. For all that I'm the Gods' Messenger, I haven't been in very many battles, and from what I hear about Voldemort it's not one I want to be unprepared for. I got lucky on the first mission… this time I can't expect events to conspire in my favour._

Her thoughts continued along those lines as she broke off from the patterns the others were practicing and brought her body through on more complex manoeuvres. Her shoulders screamed as she brought fought underused and underexercised muscles to complete the pattern dance. She had just finished her third dance- the _Floating Butterfly_- when she stopped to notice everyone watching her. She scowled. "What?"

Amelia gaped. "Why haven't you taught us any of _that_?" She asked.

Sarah smirked. "Because you couldn't actually manage most of those moves at the level you're at. Stretch everyday, push yourself harder and harder, and maybe in a couple of months you'll be flexible enough to learn them."

Amelia scowled, but she accepted the answer, remembering what had happened with Fernando when he had tried to do things too quickly. Alanna clapped a hand over her mouth to cover a yawn. Sarah took a look at her watch and did a doubletake. "It's dinner time, guys. We should get going."

They trickled out the door, heading towards the dining hall, aware of the grumbling occurring in each of their stomachs.

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

Sarah giggled as Ron scowled. "Why did you have to tell them about the time Fred and George tricked me into eating dye? It was days before my hair changed back…"

She shook her head, unable to answer his question through her laughter. Hermione, Harry, Ginny and Neville joined her in laughter, leaving the older Weasley frowning. Suddenly, Sarah heard something and held up a hand for quiet. "Hold on, do you hear that?"

Everyone shut their mouths quickly, listening carefully. What they heard stunned them. A voice filtered through one of the corridors; nasty and malicious in nature. "How dare you forsake the Slytherin way, befriending that mudblood whore!"

Sarah gritted her teeth as she heard the response, and the first voice's reaction. "I'll do as I please, Malfoy. Get away from me."

There was a thump of flesh on flesh, and a cry as something hit the wall. "And _I'll_ do as _I_ please, Jones."

Sarah held up her hand, stopping the Gryffindors from running around the corner. She turned it by herself, her eyes blazing and walked right up to Malfoy. It took a punch to the nose for him to notice her presence. Sarah picked Amelia up, propping her against the wall she had fell upon when Malfoy struck her. Running her eyes critically over the girl, Sarah winced as she saw a bruise blossoming against the girl's cheek.

She turned back to Malfoy, who was scuttling down the hallway, unknowingly towards the waiting Gryffindors in an effort to escape Sarah. She balled her hands into a fist, when she spoke her voice was thick with rage. "How dare you. She's ten. _Ten years old._ And you have no problems hitting her, abusing her for who she chooses to befriend. I should pound you into the dirt. I won't… I'll turn you over to Dumbledore's punishments instead. And I'll make sure he doesn't go easy on you." It took ever fibre of her being not to wipe the smirk that appeared on his face permanently _off_.

Sarah whistled loudly, and her friends came out from around the corner. She gently leant Amelia on Hermione's waiting shoulder; the young girl was swaying slightly. Sarah roughly yanked Draco to his feet. Calling to Hermione she said, "Take Amelia back to _our_ common room. I'm taking this scum to the headmaster. I don't care if any of the others have objections to her being there; tell them to sod off if they raise a fuss. I'll be there as soon as I can."

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

"Chocolate Frogs." Sarah muttered before shoving Draco roughly onto the steps as they started moving. She ignored his protests; he had become increasingly vocal on their trip as it became apparent she wasn't about to clock him for speaking.

She stormed into the Headmaster's office without knocking, dragging the blonde behind her. "Professor, this has to stop. Malfoy and the rest of the Slytherins are tormenting Amelia; tonight he attacked her, again, and it's left her with a black eye. _She can't go back there!"_ Sarah paused as she notice Professor Dumbledore's company. She grimaced. "Oh, hello, Professor Snape."

He smiled thinly. "A problem involving members of _my_ house, Miss Gibson? Is there a reason you didn't come to me, first?"

She met his gaze. "Because I don't trust you to deal with it fairly and impartially. I rather expect you'll give Malfoy a pat on the back and send him on his way, rather than punish the little bastard for what he's done!"

The potion's master stood, a glare on his face. "How dare you-"

"I'm not a student anymore, in case you don't remember. I'm as much a teacher here as yourself; you have no authority over me." She stared him back down into his seat.

Dumbledore cleared his throat quietly. "My dear, we were having a meeting. As you have stated you are as much a teacher here as Professor Snape; perhaps you should deal with Mr Malfoy's incursions as a professor would?"

Sarah's jaw dropped. "You mean… I can take off points? And give detentions?" Dumbledore inclined his head slightly and Sarah narrowed her eyes. "I can't believe you don't want to deal with this yourself!"

He met her gaze. "My dear, our meeting was rather important. I'm _sure_ you understand." Sarah's nostrils flared, but she understood his meaning. This was Order business; she was on her own in the issue. She dragged Malfoy back down the stairs, grinding her teeth all the way.

When they reached the bottom she turned to the blonde. "Alright, fifty points off, and four detentions. As far as I've heard, that's the harshest punishment handed down, except for suspensions and expulsions; which only the headmaster can give you. Next time I'll make sure the headmaster isn't too _busy_ to deal with you. Understood?"

He smirked. "Perfectly." He turned to leave, but Sarah grabbed him roughly, shoving him against the wall.

"One more thing; the detentions? Cleaning the bathrooms on the first, second and third floors; all of them, once a week. I'll leave word with the house elves to stop cleaning them. And you don't get to use a wand. I'll see you after the sixth year's Defence Without a Wand class next week. Until then, Malfoy." She let him go and watched as he skulked down the corridor, before returning to the Gryffindor common room.

When she entered the room she scowled. There was Hermione, Ron, Harry, Ginny and Neville sitting around Amelia in a quiet, tight knit group while the rest of the Gryffindors watched with barely hidden contempt. "Alright, that's enough! Stop treating her like the enemy; the enemy's Voldemort! Now, I've just given Malfoy four detentions and forty points off for causing trouble with this girl; anyone else willing to cause trouble want the same treatment?" She glared at the offending students until they looked away.

Striding towards the group she took in the sight, stopping short. Amelia's cheek was healed, the skin a pale pink. She took in the young girl's face; she looked incredibly uncomfortable. "Alanna's been?" Hermione nodded.

Sarah's face softened as she continued her approach. Kneeling before the out-of-place Slytherin she brought her hands up to the girl's neck; she loosened the tie around her neck. Pulling the garment around from the other girl's neck she tossed it aside. "You don't belong there, Amelia. And you aren't going back there. If one of the other teachers has a problem with it they can bring it up with me." She raised her voice. "Is there room in any of the girl's dorms here?"

The first year girl's shook their heads, eyes full of distrust; the expression was repeated on the faces of almost all the other girls in Gryffindor. Ginny looked regretful when she saw the faces of her dorm mates. Hermione set her mouth. "Since you left, there's room in ours."

Unfortunately Lavender and Parvati had a problem. "No, she's not staying with _us!_ We don't want a Slytherin in our dorms." Sarah's eyes flashed. If looks could kill the two girls who were stubbornly shaking their heads would have been decapitated.

Amelia stopped her from giving them a tongue lashing. "It's alright Sarah… I'll just go wait in the library until curfew. I'll be fine."

Sarah shook her head. "No. You'll stay in our room- Alanna and mine. You won't get through the night uninjured if you don't. Come on, we'll get you settled, and you'll need a rest. I know what a healing can do to a girl."

She led the girl out of the common room, and almost turned back when she heard someone mutter, "Someone, change the password, quick. We can't have a Slytherin knowing our passwords." The only thing that kept her moving was the trembling girl that stood before her, fear in her eyes.

When she entered the quarters she shared with the older knight Alanna took one look at the young girl and sighed. "So it's come to this?" Sarah nodded before making her way into her own room. She pulled blankets out of a chest by the foot of her bed, laying them out on the stone floor in a makeshift sleeping roll.

"You'll sleep on the bed; I'll take the floor." Amelia looked about ready to refuse when Sarah continued. "No arguments. Tomorrow I'll enlist Professor Snape's help in retrieving your belongings from your dorm, but for the time being you can wear one of my nightshirts to bed." She rummaged through a closet before picking one out. She grimaced. "I'm afraid it's probably going to swamp you… oh well. Go and get changed and get to bed. I need to speak with Alanna for a while. Get some sleep."

She glanced once more at the young girl before leaving the door, closing it quietly. Alanna looked up from where she wrote with a quill. "How is she? That was quite a shiner Malfoy gave her."

Sarah sighed. "Yeah, it was. I wanna know why she didn't fight back; she's more than skilled enough to fight him off-"

Alanna cut her off. "She's ten, she's half his size and she hasn't anywhere near the strength to fight him off." She used a finger to mark each point.

Sarah winced. "Alright, I get it. Oh, just letting you know, since you and I are considered 'teachers' now, I too get to take off points and give detentions."

Alanna smirked. "And how many did you take off of Malfoy?"

"Fifty points and four detentions. He's going to be cleaning the toilets on the first, second and third floors for four weeks in a row; I'm going to have the house elves stop cleaning them. No wands." Alanna grinned in satisfaction when she heard that.

Sarah waited a few moments and knocked on the door to her bedroom. When she received no response she cracked the door; she saw the girl sleeping soundly on her bed, her chest rising and falling slowly. Sarah shook her head sadly. She turned back to Alanna. "And I thought my life was screwed."

Alanna tsked. "Your life isn't screwed. Why would you think that?"

Sarah sighed. "I've been stuffed around by the gods for over a year now; my family hates me and if I ever go back to my version of earth again I'll be swamped by the media. I had my whole life planned out; I was going to be a doctor Alanna! I had the grades, I would have been accepted into the Australian National University, I was going to be somebody! And when I found my place in Tortall; when I was getting ready to fix the mess that the idiot clerk from Corus left of my fief, what does Mithros do? He shows up to screw me around- _again._ Not only does he stuff up my life, he's taken you away from your family for much too long, Alanna. You shouldn't have to go through that."

Alanna crossed the room and hugged Sarah tightly around the shoulders. "Stop feeling sorry for yourself." Sarah blinked at her response. "I'm not; I'm learning new things here. Sure, I miss George, Alan, Thom and Aly, but I haven't seen Aly since she last visited from the Copper Isles, Alan's off squiring somewhere, I probably wouldn't have seen him all year anyway, and who knows what idea Thom's gotten into his head; he's probably trying out for shaman of a Bazhir tribe as we speak. I probably wouldn't have seen any of them anyway, in the time we've been here."

Sarah's next question wiped the attempted smile off of Alanna's face. "What about George?"

"We've been apart for longer." Alanna tried to sound nonchalant. Sarah crossed her arms over her chest.

"Mithros still shouldn't have taken you from your family. It's just not fair." Sarah was adamant, but Alanna just shrugged.

"Life isn't fair. How many knights can say they've travelled to another dimension, anyway?" Alanna asked.

Sarah shook her head and stood once more to check on Amelia. "Fine, dodge the subject. I'm going to bed, see you in the morning." She ignored Alanna's stare as she entered her room. After getting changed into her nightclothes she crawled onto the laid out blankets that served to soften the stone floor, pulling a quilt over her. She watched the young girl sleeping for a few moments before falling asleep herself.


	12. Chapter 11

Chapter 11:

Sarah cracked an eye, yawning. The sun filtered in through window, making its way across the bed, where a young girl sat, watching. Sarah frowned. "What? What are you looking at? Do I have bed hair?"

Amelia looked confused. "No… you were having a nightmare. It sounded bad."

Sarah shrugged before standing. "What's new?"

She stretched languidly before falling onto the floor, in pushup position. She counted out twenty reps before rolling over, counting out twenty quick situps. When she finished she stood, walked over the cupboard and removed a set of breeches and a tunic shirt. She grinned at the idea of wearing _normal_ clothes, and then quickly shook her head. When had she gone from thinking jeans and a t-shirt were normal to thinking breeches and a tunic shirt were normal?

She bathed and got dressed quickly in the bathroom before reviewing Amelia's uniform with a tsk. She pulled out the wand, even as the girl stayed sitting in the bed watched, and muttered _'Scourgify!'_ the dust from when she had fallen on the flagstones disappeared and Sarah shook the uniform out, laying it across the chest at the foot of her bed. "There you go. Go get yourself cleaned up and we'll head down to breakfast."

The girl still stared. Finally she asked, "Weren't you scared by your nightmare? You were panting and muttering and tossing and turning… weren't you frightened?"

Sarah smiled grimly. "I stopped being scared of that nightmare a long time ago. See you outside."

She walked into the living room she shared with Alanna, picking up the volume of 'Defence Against the Dark Arts; Volume Seven'. Sarah flicked through the theory on centaurs; she already knew a lot about the creatures from Daine and Numair. She came across the section on Boggarts and felt a frown crease her forehead. "Hey, check this out." She called Alanna over. The red head had just entered the room; now she walked over and peered down at the script on the page. "It turns into whatever you fear most… Let's hope Voldemort doesn't have any of _those_ on his side."

Alanna nodded seriously before squinting at the text. "What does it say there? Something about a spell… Ridikulus?" Sarah read on and giggled.

"Yeah, Ridikulus… you just think of your fear in a ridiculous manner…" Sarah shook her head and glanced up as Amelia entered the room. "Ready for breakfast?" The young girl nodded. Sarah closed the book and stood, making her way to the door. As they entered the hallway they noticed Hermione, Ron, Harry, Neville and Ginny walking a few meters ahead. "Wait up!"

They waited for the trio to catch up and together they made their way to the dining hall. When they entered all conversation inside came to an abrupt halt; faces turned to stare at Amelia. "Looks like the gossip's off me for a change." Sarah muttered as she led the young girl to the Gryffindor's table.

The girl moved to pull herself out of Sarah's grasp, trying to make her way to the Slytherin table. "Uh uh." Sarah muttered. "Ignore the idiots in Gryffindor, we all want you there and no one's liable to poison your food after you serve it up if you sit with us." She raised her voice. "Alanna, sitting with us or the teachers today?"

Alanna had taken to sitting with the Gryffindors some mornings, and this morning she nodded. "You."

Amelia shrunk further and further into Sarah's grasp as they made their way closer and closer to the Gryffindor table. When they sat down, with Sarah on one side of the girl, Alanna on the other, she was pale, stealing furtive glances towards the door. "Calm down." Sarah muttered as food appeared in the middle of the table. "No one's going to hurt you. Take a look around; no one means you any harm." In fact, they were surrounded by Harry, Hermione, Ron, Neville, Ginny and Fernando, providing a barrier of warmth and friendship against the hardness of the other students' glares. Amelia calmed down a little after that, managing a half decent serving of oatmeal before they were scheduled to leave for classes.

Sarah left Amelia's in Fernando's care, rushing to catch up to Professor Snape before he left the dining hall. "Professor!"

He turned to her, a grimace on his face. "What is it, Gibson?"

"She's not returning to the Slytherin dorms. I won't allow it. I need your help to gather her things." She steeled herself against an argument. She wasn't disappointed.

"Who are you to decide whether a student in _my_ house returns to the dorms? Making demands when you need _my_ help!" Ice dripped from his voice.

Sarah's eyes flashed. "If you looked after your house _properly_ then we wouldn't be having this problem! She's been tormented all year because she doesn't hate mudbloods and she isn't a Death Eater wanabe!"

Snape sneered. "You think you could have done a better job? Fine, the students will be happy to have her out!"

Sarah looked ready to strike the man, but stopped herself. With a curt nod she headed in the direction of the Slytherin dorms, the potions master following her. When they entered the first year Slytherin girl's dorms, Sarah gasped. One bed, which _had_ to be Amelia's, had the words 'muggle lover' painted on the bedspread with a pink substance; when Sarah walked over to Amelia's trunk at the foot of the bed, where she found the contents soaked with the same substance.

When she touched the substance she found it was sticky; attempting to scourgify the contents of the trunk yielded no result. Sarah growled and closed the lid, hefting the box and sticking it by the door. She walked over to the set of draws by Amelia's bed and pulled them open, almost afraid of what she would find. She wasn't disappointed.

Photographs had been torn to pieces, her knick knacks had been broken. Rage overwhelmed her as she stared at memories destroyed. She pulled out the belongings, broken or not, and looked for a bag to pack them in. She found one under the bed, but when she picked it up the bottom fell out. "The little snots thought of everything…" Professor Snape was standing at the doorway, incensed by the destruction that had occurred in his house under his nose.

Sarah whipped off her tunic, leaving her dressed in her button up shirt and her breeches, and spread it over a clean section of Amelia's bed. She bundled the younger girl's belongings on the shirt, and set the bundle atop the trunk at the doorway. She turned, one last thing to do. Whipping out her wand, she pointed it at the pink goo, muttering, "Putrefy." And wrinkled her nose as she left the room. Already it was beginning to smell. When she looked at Snape, waiting for an objection, she found him watching curiously.

"Your ideas of punishment seem… unusual. I daresay it will be quite effective in getting the students to clean up this mess. I'll inform the houseelves to keep this room as it is." Sarah grinned at his response, and hefted the trunk.

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

Amelia had been upset at first, when she saw the state of her belongings. Every piece of clothing needed to be replaced. All of her knick knacks had been broken; Hermione and Sarah had repaired them with their wands, but there were still hairline cracks where they had been smashed against flagstones. Sarah watched Amelia's reaction carefully when she showed her the photographs; she wasn't surprised to notice indifference on the girl's face.

Sarah had watched sadly, and after a few minutes she gently prodded the girl towards the dining hall; it was lunch time and they were missing out. When they walked into the room Sarah frowned. There were gaps at all of the tables; largest at the Slytherin table. Sarah did a quick check; the missing weren't from any particular age group. She led Amelia to the Gryffindor tables before heading up to the dais, a question on her mind.

When she stood before Dumbledore she asked, "Headmaster, what's going on? Where are all the students?"

He regarded her carefully. "Miss Gibson, have you been reading the Daily Prophet?"

She shook her head. "Nope. Why? What poison has it been dripping?"

He frowned. "It seems someone at the Daily Prophet has decided that with you here, at Hogwarts, it makes the school a target for Death Eater attacks. They published an article stating just that yesterday. Since then, thirty parents have written in, looking to have their children removed from enrolment."

Sarah gaped, aghast. "You're kidding! Who published the article?!"

"A reporter named Rita Skeeter. She-" McGonagall began, but Sarah cut her off.

"Caused a bit of trouble in the past, hasn't she? With Harry?" Sarah didn't need to be answered. She turned and headed down the Gryffindor table, noticing Seamus was missing. When she reached the section where Hermione, Ron and Harry sat, with Amelia sitting between them, she asked crossly, "Why didn't you tell me? You should have shown me the article!"

Ron glanced at Harry guiltily. "We were going to show you… but then Hermione said not to."

"Ron!" The other girl cried, outraged. Sarah just stood there, tapping her foot on the flagstones, waiting for a straight answer. Hermione sighed. "We _all_ thought it would be better you found out later, considering there was nothing you could do about it and when you get angry you get…"

"Scary." Amelia muttered from her seat next to Harry. Sarah glared.

"Fine. Whatever. If people are stupid enough to think they're safer _away_ from the one place with the strongest wards in the world with some of the strongest wizards in the world…" Sarah trailed off as the implications sank in.

Harry wordlessly scooted over, letting Sarah sit between him and Amelia, with Ron and Hermione sitting across from them. Sarah dug into her lunch, barely noticing the others watching her. She finished up the meal in silence, before standing to leave. Her eyes lingered on the empty gaps at the table before she left, her head down, her face creased in thought.

The rest of the day was spent training in the Room of Requirement, sparring against opponents the room provided for her. Alanna popped in for a time, training with her, before it was time for the afternoon lesson. There were only three seventh years left for their lessons, but Alanna and Sarah didn't amalgamate the class with the sixth years, instead taking advantage the small class size to teach one on one.

After the lesson they were joined once again by Amelia, Harry, Ron, Hermione, Neville and Fernando, for their extra training lesson. Once again Sarah focused on her physical prowess, rather than her Gift, preferring to train that in private with Alanna. When they were suitably exhausted they made their way to dinner, looking forward to a hot meal. What they got was a shock they hadn't imagined.

The dinner had started off well enough, until a lone owl swooped down the Gryffindor table, dropping red envelope on Amelia's plate. Everyone stared, and Sarah frowned in confusion. "I thought mail only came in the morni-" Sarah was cut off when the letter hopped up in the air of its own accord.

A mouth formed as they all stared. "Blood traitor!" A shrill voice screamed in Amelia's face. "You will return home this instant, and I will know exactly_ why_ you've been sitting with mudbloods and traitors, you worthless muggle lover!"

Everyone sat staring, in shock, even as snickers were heard from the Slytherin table. Malfoy; who had remained while many of his year mates left, the loudest of them. Amelia's face was pale, tears welled in her eyes as she stood up jerkily. "Amelia-" Sarah started, but stopped when she saw the girl shake her head. The younger girl made her way to the door, exiting the room as everyone stared.

Sarah stared for a moment longer before rushing after the girl. She caught up with Amelia three corridors away. "Wait up!"

Amelia didn't listen; she only stopped when Sarah spun her around to face her. "You don't have to go."

A voice sounded behind them. "I'm afraid she does."

Sarah whipped her head around to face Dumbledore. "What? Why? You heard the message; she won't be received with warm arms there."

"But her mother is her legal guardian; Miss Jones' personal feelings have no bearing as to her accommodation." He replied, his face carefully guarded. "Perhaps, we should continue this conversation in my office?"

Sarah followed, leading Amelia, a frown of confusion on her face. When they were in Dumbledore's office, with the door closed behind them, the old man turned around to face them seriously. "There is, perhaps, a way that Miss Jones can remain here, under the guardianship of a Ministry official."

"How? And who… Fudge is a Ministry official, we'd want one that isn't a total prat." Sarah said practically.

Dumbledore turned to Amelia, his face kind. "My dear, are the rumours about your mother's connection to Voldemort true?"

Amelia shrunk in her seat, her face uncertain. "Sir… I… My mother…"

Sarah scowled, laying a hand on the other girl's shoulder for support. "Why does it matter? Don't ask her to-"

"Yes." Amelia's voice was quiet, nevertheless it stopped Sarah in her tracks. "It's true. One day Lucious Malfoy and Lestrange- I don't remember his first name- came to our house and discussed his rising. They were all excited… Mother sent me out of the room before they started talking, but I listened at the key hole…" The young girl hung her head, wringing her hands in her lap.

Sarah closed her eyes in regret, opening them when Dumbledore spoke once more. "Is there any proof, my dear?"

"Amelia, you don't have to do this." Sarah said quietly. The young girl turned to face her.

"Yes, I do Sarah. You don't understand. Sure, she's my only family, but she's destroying families by following You Know – V-Voldemort. She's destroying families by following Voldemort." Sarah gazed at the ten year old with sympathy, watching as she raised her head to face the headmaster. "She keeps her Death Eater mask in a draw in her study."

Sarah's jaw dropped, even as Dumbledore leaned back in his chair. "That should be enough, I'm sure. You've done the right thing, my dear."

Amelia nodded, tears brimming in her eyes. She let out a sob before covering her face with her hands. Sarah grimaced and stood, lifting Amelia gently to her feet. "Will you deal with the logistics, Dumbledore?" The old man nodded, and Sarah led the young girl out of his office, down the stairs and back to the rooms they shared with Alanna. Amelia allowed Sarah to lead her silently, quiet and withdrawn.

When they entered the quarters Sarah shook her head quickly, telling Alanna to stand down. The red head settled back in the seat she had been sitting in as Sarah led the ten year old into her room.

Sitting her down on the bed, she walked into the bathroom, retrieving a wash cloth and wetting it, before returning to the other room. Sarah knelt before Amelia and gently wiped the tears away. "Amelia?" She asked quietly.

The girl stared for a moment longer, before throwing herself face down on the bed, sobbing uncontrollably. Sarah moved to sit next to her, rubbing her back in sympathy, and watching in concern as the girl cried herself to sleep.


	13. Chapter 12

Chapter 12:

The next morning Sarah awoke early, but she didn't beat Amelia, who was standing at the window, watching the sunrise. "Don't worry. I'm alright now." The girl said without turning around.

Sarah stood and joined her at the window. "How did you know I was awake?"

The girl turned dull eyes towards her. "You were having a nightmare. I heard you gasp when you woke up. What are they about, anyway?"

Sarah grimaced. "Just something that happened to me once. Don't worry about it."

Amelia shrugged slightly. "Alright. If you don't want to talk about it."

A rap at the door interrupted Sarah's response. "Girls, are you decent?" Alanna called through the oak.

Sarah raised an eyebrow. "If you call nightgowns decent…"

The red head's voice was exasperated. "Then get dressed. We have visitors."

Sarah shook her head, rolling her eyes before entering the bathroom with a fresh pair of breeches and a shirt. Forgoing her shower she dressed quickly; by the time she was finished Amelia was dressed in her bedroom, waiting. Sarah grinned at the girl and bowed, gesturing to the door.

When they entered the living room they noticed Dumbledore and a woman with pink hair and a stub of a nose. "Tonks!" Sarah exclaimed with a grin. The other woman stood and wrapped Sarah in a tight hug.

"Wotcher, Sarah! How are you?" The metamorphagus asked.

Sarah was about to answer when Dumbledore cleared his throat. "We are here on business, Miss Gibson."

Sarah shrugged, an easy grin on her face as she flopped down on a comfy sofa. "So, what brings you the two corridors to our neck of the woods, Headmaster? And Tonks, awful long way for a visit." She kept her voice light, although she had an idea why they were there.

The old man had waited patiently for Sarah to stop speaking, and now he watched the two youngest girls in the room. "The situation with Cassiopeia Jones has been resolved. After your visit yesterday I contacted the Auror's office immediately, and under the law a team of Aurors raided your home. They found your mother's Death Eater mask, and an investigation into her wand revealed the Cruciatus curse was the last spell used. She's been arrested, and if all goes well she'll be sent to Azkaban by tomorrow morning." Sarah saw Amelia stiffen and winced in sympathy.

The younger girl's jaw worked, and she took a deep, shuddering breath. "What will happen to me?"

Tonks chose this moment to speak. "I've been appointed to take care of you until a proper guardian can be arranged. My name is Nymphadora Tonks, but if you call me Nymphadora I'll ship you straight off to a Ministry orphanage." She tried to make a joke of it, but Sarah groaned as Amelia glanced, fearful, in her direction. Tonks seemed to realise her mistake and rushed to reassure the ten year old. "Not really, I swear! I just… don't know how to deal with kids…" She trailed off weakly.

Sarah shook her head ruefully. Amelia was perched on the edge of her seat, wringing her hands as she stared at the metamorphagus. "So… Am I going to stay at Hogwarts?" The girl asked.

Tonks grinned. "Is that what you want?" Amelia nodded profusely. "Then of course you'll be staying here. Believe it or not, we only want the best for you."

Amelia squealed and launched herself into Sarah's arms. "Thankyou, thankyou, thankyou." She whispered in Sarah's ear.

Sarah returned the hug, half smile on her face. "Nobody can make you do anything you don't want to. There's always a choice. Don't forget that, ever."

The girl freed herself from the embrace and hugged Tonks. The pink haired woman frowned and stiffened for a moment before hugging Amelia back. There was an awkward silence until Alanna cleared her throat. "Well, is there anything else? Because breakfast is going to start soon and then there's a Quidditch game- Gryffindor versus Hufflepuff."

Dumbledore shook his head before turning to Tonks. "Nymphadora, do you plan on staying for breakfast? I'm sure Harry and his friends would enjoy a visit."

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

Tonks did stay for breakfast, and afterward they made their way to the Quidditch field, walking with Harry, Hermione, Ginny and Ron. The three Quidditch players were strutting confidently towards the field while Alanna, Tonks, Sarah, Hermione and Amelia shook their heads at their brashness. Hufflepuff _was_ an easy team to beat, but in Quidditch anything can happen.

At the team tents they went their own ways, the non players making their way to the stands to watch. When Madam Hooch signalled the beginning of the game and Lee Jordan began commentating they lost themselves in the game, cheering loudly whenever Gryffindor scored a goal.

Suddenly Harry dived for the snitch, torpedoing towards the ground at a lightning pace. There was a collective gasp as he drew closer to the green grass. The snitch dodged out of his grasp at the last minute and a groan came up from the Gryffindor stand, a cheer from the Slytherin stand.

And suddenly there were more than fourteen students on brooms and the one teacher umpiring the match. There were another ten people on brooms, with white, skullshaped masks. "Death Eaters!" Someone yelled.

Everyone began to panic, but froze when they heard a voice, amplified by the Sonorous Charm. "We just want the blood traitor girl. The rest of you may leave." They angled toward the Gryffindor stands, and in a sudden, terrifying glimpse of clarity Sarah knew they were there for Amelia.

She spun to the younger girl. "Get down and stay down. We'll do our best to protect you. Do you understand?" Amelia barely managed to nod her head as Sarah shoved her down, against the waist high wall. She pulled out her wand with her right hand, holding a ball of fire in her left. Alanna threw up a protective barrier and Tonks drew her wand.

Sarah surveyed the situation. They were surrounded by innocent students, who were frantic and milling in panic, the stairs clogged with throngs of students. Hermione and Neville had their wands out, and Harry, Ron and Ginny were speeding towards the Gryffindor stand, and the teachers were trying to make their way against the tide of students towards the group of defenders. Unfortunately, the Death Eaters were approaching very quickly, riding firebolts that matched Harry's in speed and agility.

All in all, their situation sucked.

The Death Eaters arrived first, wands out, firing spells at the purple shield that was now matted with crimson as Sarah added her strength to the spell. "Petrificus Totalus!" Sarah cried, aiming at a Death Eater. Her attack missed by a long shot, however, as did all of her next ones. She tried throwing balls of energy at the Death Eaters, but that too failed; they were travelling too fast to hit.

Sarah gritted her teeth. "This isn't working!" She yelled to Alanna.

"I know!" Was the reply.

Sarah whipped her head around in a desperate search for a new defence, her eyes resting on Harry, Ron and Ginny, approaching fast, an idea forming as they did. She pointed her wand in the direction of the Quidditch storage shed. "_Accio_ broom!" Whipping her wand in the direction of the main castle, she cried out for the other item she needed. "_Accio_ sword!"

There were many suits of armour, and many coat of arms around the castle, and now a sword detached itself from one of those coat of arms and flew like a sharp missile towards her. As a broom came whistling towards the stands Sarah stood on the hand railing, her hands outstretched.

"Sarah! What are you doing?" Alanna yelled, still throwing curses at the Death Eaters.

"Just keep the shield up!" She called back, as the wind whipped around her hair. She turned back to the broom as it grew closer and closer. When it grew close enough to grab she leapt off the handrailing, hanging in air for a brief, terrifying moment before grasping the broom shaft in both hands tightly. Sarah pulled herself up on the broom, gaining a sitting position just in time to catch the sword by the hilt as it came whistling towards her.

_Just like fighting on a horse…_ Sarah thought queasily as she looked down at the ground, some hundred feet below. She put the distance out of her mind as brought the broom around, facing the Death Eaters, a fierce look on her face as she sped towards them. _But a trained horse knows how to move in a battle; you don't have to control every nuance. What am I getting myself into?_

The Death Eaters, apparently realising that she was a formidable opponent, had decided to take her out first. They approached with all the speed their firebolts provided, even as Sarah's ancient broom rushed towards them at barely two third's the speed.

She let out a fierce battle cry, raising the sword, ready to strike down the first Death Eater that came within reach. Before they did, however, they resumed firing spells at her, the flashes of red surprising her for a moment. They were trying to stun her, not kill her. Voldemort wanted her alive.

The realisation stunned her to the point where her first pass was spent dodging curses, rather than attacking. She pulled her broom around in a tight turn, taking the broom through for another run. This time, as she approached the hooded figures she managed to run one through with the broadsword she clutched in her left hand, another she drew blood by swiping at his arm.

She risked a quick glance at Alanna, Tonks and Amelia, and noticed they were under siege by two Death Eaters using Shielding Spells to block Tonks and Alanna's attacks, while throwing attacks of green and red light. Alanna looked pale and drawn, the effort from keeping the shield up taking its toll on the older knight. Tonks was throwing her head around, frantic, trying to track the two Death Eaters as they swooped around. Sarah gritted her teeth and sped towards the two Death Eaters, swerving to avoid the melange of spells that swirled around her. The first one she ran through before she was noticed, the second one spun to face her, the mage and her charge forgotten below.

"Mudblood whore!" She heard the man bellow before throwing a stunning spell at her. Sarah threw the broom into a corkscrew, narrowly avoiding the spells even as she evened out, the sword outstretched in her hand. At the last minute he threw up a spell, "Protego!" At which her sword rebounded painfully off a shield, jarring the sword out of her hand. She watched with a grimace as it fell to the ground.

She whirled to face the man once more, with her weapon gone he had obviously thought she was barely worth his time; he had turned back to Alanna and Amelia, and was steadily chipping away at the shield.

Sarah gathered a ball of magic in her hand and threw it at the man; he had left his back unguarded as he shielded his front from Alanna. Her ball of magic hit him square on the back, knocking him off his firebolt as the magic overwhelmed his body, turning it to ashes that drifted slowly to the ground below. Before the broomstick could follow its owner to the ground below, Sarah whipped out her wand. "_Accio__ Dead Death Eater's Firebolt!"_

She transferred brooms mid flight and thought with a grin, _Now__ the scores are even…_ before taking a quick status check. Harry was engaged with two Death Eaters, there were two bodies on the ground below, and Sarah knew there would be a pile of ashes somewhere down there. The other five Death Eaters were engaged in several different battles; one with Dumbledore and McGonagall, two others with Ginny, Ron and Hermione from the Gryffindor stand, and the other two had split off from the group and were terrorizing the students as they left the field, firing Cruciatus curses into the crowd.

Sarah gritted her teeth. Help Harry or help the other students? Her decision was made for her when Ginny and Ron split off from their fight, the battle won, and rushed to Harry's aid. Sarah spun her firebolt around, speeding for the two Death Eaters. On the way she called her sword back to her hand and ignored the jarring pain when she grasped it. She must have broken a couple of fingers when the sword was forced out of her hand so viciously last time.

As she swooped at them with the speed of a firebolt, the tallest Death Eater seemed to notice her approach. He swooped around to face her, alone, and Sarah spotted a glimpse of blonde hair under the hood. "Malfoy!" She snarled.

"Mudblood." He returned. "I told you your time would come. How does it feel to know you are about to die?"

Sarah laughed, an almost insane cackle, before answering him. "You think it is I who will die today?"

"Take another look." His voice dripped with ice. She turned her head, and there, on the horizon, came another twelve Death Eaters on brooms. And in the middle came a man with a head shaped almost like a snake; he had slits for nostrils and no discernible ears.

She whipped back around to face him. "All of this for one little girl? Or is it something more?"

"You." Was his reply. "The Dark Lord would like a word with you."

Sarah's eyes widened. She took stock of the situation; Harry was being aided by Ginny and Ron; they were rushing back to the Gryffindor stands, where the other defenders were centralized. Dumbledore and the other teachers had made their way to Alanna, Tonks and Amelia, and were helping defend the cabal. Neville and Hermione were aiding Alanna with the shield; Sarah thought Alanna might have collapsed by now otherwise. And finally the last Death Eaters tormenting the students had turned around to face her, his wand drawn and pointed at her chest.

Without waiting any further she brought the nose of her broom around, a crimson shield glittering around her as she glided head to head with the approaching reinforcements. When she grew close enough to hear their shouted spells she dove, downward, in a replica of Harry's attempt on the snitch earlier. She spun a corkscrew to avoid the spells fired at her and pulled up close to the ground, her toes skimming barely a foot above the grass.

Turning her head, she noticed all of the Death Eaters followed her, and she pulled her broom into a steep climb, making her way up the Ravenclaw stands. She dodged a few stunning spells and risked taking another look. Every Death Eater was still following her. She frowned when she realised she couldn't see the snake like man. She turned back around and almost collided with him; she turned sharply to the right to avoid the midair catastrophe before trying to turn once more; her path was blocked by the Death Eaters to every angle.

Sarah thought she might have been able to punch through their barrier, until they all raised their wands, yelling "Protego!" In unison.

Sarah growled and turned to the leader. "Hmm… Snake-ish… You can fly with_out_ a broom…" Sarah started at the realisation. "So you're Voldemort."

When he spoke his voice was as soft as the slither of a snake, but as strong as the leader he was. "My dear, we meet at last. I have heard so many reports about your abilities from my colleagues here. Of course, I didn't believe them. But seeing you fighting today makes me wonder whether I shouldn't have tortured them quite so thoroughly for their failures."

Sarah shook her head. "What do you want?"

"You." Came his quiet reply, and he drew his wand. "To join my cause. Together we will free the world from the oppression of the muggles and mudbloods."

Sarah coughed lightly. She had _not_ been expecting that. "Well, unfortunately I'm a mudblood, or weren't you told?"

"A mudblood though you might be, only a pure blood could control the Wandless Arts as reports say you do. Your capacity for wand magic has no bearing, your value lies in your… _other_ talents." He said in what he obviously thought was a convincing tone.

"So when my usefulness is expended, you won't kill me? Like I'm going to believe _that_." She scoffed.

His eyes hardened. "I am offering you an opportunity. When we take over the Magical world, we will find your community and one of two things will happen. We can destroy it, or make it more prosperous than you could ever imagine. Which would you prefer?"

Sarah felt something snake like enter her mind. She gasped at the contact, then growled, her hand grasping for the amber around her neck. "Great Mother, grant me protection from his attempts on my mind." She whispered.

Power that felt like the breath of a cool breeze entered her mind, fortifying it against the Dark Lord's attacks.

He frowned and renewed his attack. Sarah let a slow grin creep over her face. "Sorry about that, private screenings only. As for your question? Everyone in my society would prefer to die than cause the deaths of innocents. Myself included. Either kill me now or leave us alone."

His eyes narrowed, and she noticed how red they were. "Very well then. A pity, to waste a life that could be so valuable to our cause." He raised his wand and pointed it at her. "Avada Kedavra."

Sarah barely got the shield up in time; she threw all her strength into blocking the spell. With all her effort, the curse still left her reeling for a time. Luckily, Voldemort was studying her carefully, watching as she recovered her balance on the broom she had nearly fallen off of.

"So the reports are true. You _have_ developed a defence against the killing curse. Interesting… very interesting. I suppose you've been teaching it to all the students then?" Sarah grinned in response, not willing to admit how rare the Gift was. He didn't look impressed. "Let us see how well it works, shall we?" He pointed his wand in the direction of her friends.

Alanna, Neville and Hermione were all drained from the shield they had put up; they couldn't defend everyone if it came to that. Harry was supporting Ginny, who had taken a stun to the chest and was swaying in his grasp. They were all watching as the scene unfolded; Sarah could almost see the look on Alanna's face as she watched the show down. "Don't do it!" She cried as he began to move his wand in the spell.

He didn't pause, yelling, "Avada Kedavra!"

Sarah did the only thing she could think of. She threw up a shield around her and Voldemort, releasing her hold on the broom, keeping it steady with her knees alone. The only difference about this shield was that it kept spells in, rather than out. The green light hit the side and disappeared, as she glared at the man who inspired fear in so many. "You won't hurt my friends. I won't let you."

Before he could respond a collective cheer came up from the group of defenders on the Gryffindor stand, and at least a dozen stunning spells found their mark, dropping Death Eaters like flies when at least twenty five Aurors on brooms zoomed towards them. When the grand entrance was completed, only seven Death Eaters remained on their brooms, and Voldemort looked thunderous.

Sarah met his eyes in a silent battle of wills as he struggled to destroy the shield that kept him in place. As they battled the other Death Eaters were mopped up by the Aurors. Finally, Voldemort yelled a spell Sarah hadn't heard before, "Tansuille!"

Her shield was broken with such force she was thrown backwards, off of her broom, the power leaving her stunned as she flipped head over heels towards the ground that was fast approaching. She didn't register as Voldemort flew away, faster than a firebolt, until he was out of range of Hogwarts' anti-Apparition spells, where he disappeared.

She didn't register the cries from her friends as she fell towards the deceptively soft looking green grass, nor did she register when her fall slowed to a point where someone on a broom grabbed her, supporting her until another Auror came to her other side, and they flew side by side the remaining distance to the ground, where they lay her down carefully.

Her head swam, and as faces appeared in her vision they seemed to circle her, concerned expressions on their faces as she groaned. She rolled over and brought her knees up under her, using her hands to push up off of the ground. There she sat on all fours, shaking her head slowly, trying to clear it.

There was a cry and someone skidded to an abrupt halt next to her. "Sarah! Are you okay?"

Sarah nodded before croaking, "Just a little disoriented. I'll be fine, 'Mione."

The girl hugged Sarah tightly, before they were joined by Alanna, Tonks, Amelia, Neville, Harry, Ginny, Ron and the teachers. She sat back on her haunches, to show them all she was alright, even though the world still spun lazily around her head. "I'm fine. Just need to catch my breath is all."

Alanna frowned. "He broke your spell?" Sarah nodded, but before anyone could say another word an Auror approached Mad Eye, one of the two who had caught her.

"Sir, two of them have been stabbed." The young man with short black hair said primly. "They weren't killed with magic."

Mad Eye glanced at Sarah. "Your doing?"

Sarah nodded, but her stomach roiled. "I think I'm going to be sick…" Everyone surrounding her took a step backwards, and Sarah fell back to her hands, breathing slowly in an attempt not to lose her breakfast. Alanna sat on her haunches beside her, rubbing her back slowly.

The moment passed and her stomach behaved itself, although she stayed on her hands to steady herself. The prim Auror left and returned a moment later. "This looks like the weapon, sir."

"Interesting. You can use a sword too, can you?"

Sarah nodded. "And a bunch of other weapons too." She let Alanna draw her slowly to her knees, and then her feet, even as her head swam. "Oh, and you find some ashes scattered all over the joint, my doing too…"

Alanna started leading her back towards the castle, and Tonks supported her other side, even as Sarah shook her head slowly from side to side, trying to clear it. Amelia spoke up from her position next to Tonks. "Sarah… Thanks for defending me. You almost got yourself killed for me…"

Sarah barked a laugh. "Turns out they weren't after you. They wanted me from the start, you were just the decoy to try and get me separated from the rest of you. Don't worry about it Amelia, I'm not hurt."

The girl seemed to accept that answer, and Alanna and Tonks led her back to her room, followed by Harry, Hermione, Ron and the rest of the group. She laid down on the bed, closing her eyes as the room spun, and fluttered her hand at Alanna when she asked whether she wanted some water. Sarah rolled over and let her eyes drift closed, sleep taking her.


	14. Chapter 13

A/n: Alright, approaching the end… Read and Review!!!!

Chapter 13:

Sarah slept until dinner. When her eyes opened a crack she noticed the flickering glow that suggested the only light in the room came from a candle. She groaned a little; her head pounded like it always did after a near complete magical draining. Pushing herself roughly into a sitting position, she swung her legs over the side of the bed, covering her mouth with a hand as she yawned. She spied a glass of water on the bedside table and took a long, deep gulp, draining it.

She stood after a few minutes of sitting silently and made her way to the door, not bothering to get changed. There was only one thing on her mind; a decent meal. Sure, there were grass stains and smudges of soot all over her clothes, as well as smatterings of blood on her sleeves from when she had roughly yanked the sword from falling Death Eater bodies… Sarah thought it was better she changed her shirt, at least.

She pulled an emerald top from her trunk, replacing the once brown shirt in a few, quick moments. Sarah yawned, eyeing the bed hungrily, but shook her head to herself. She needed food, sooner, rather than later. Sarah trumped down to the dining hall, her mood darkening as she took each step.

She didn't know what to expect when she entered the dining hall, but she knew it would probably involve whispers and finger pointing.

She wasn't disappointed; as she entered the room all heads turned in her direction, and a tentative applause started from the head of the Gryffindor table, spreading across the room, filling every corner; except, of course, the Slytherin table. Sarah shook her head, glancing about the room, noticing the figures standing at the walls; an honour guard of Aurors.

She spied Tonks standing behind Amelia, who sat between Harry and Ron, and gave her a quick wink. The metamorphagus grinned and gave a little wave. Mad Eye Moody was standing three Aurors away, his watchful electric blue eye whizzing around the room in search of a potential threat. She caught his eye and nodded, a silent thanks for saving her life. He responded with a slight incline of his head, accepting the gratitude without a word.

Sarah had almost made it to her seat when she heard a whisper from the Hufflepuff table. It was a fifth year boy, who glanced furtively around before speaking to a girl next to him. "If we'd just given You Know Who that Slytherin chick then Joseph wouldn't be in the infirmary right now."

Sarah narrowed her eyes and sped up, ignoring the questioning look Alanna sent her way as she walked past. When she reached the teacher's table she spoke quietly to Dumbledore. "How many are dead?"

He looked her over with a curious expression. "None. We were very, very lucky."

Sarah nodded before muttering a silent thanks to the gods. She turned to face the assembly of students and Aurors alike. "Just so everyone knows, Voldemort- Stop wincing at the name, it won't bite- was here for _me_, not Amelia. She was just a ploy to get me alone." She held up a hand to stop the mutters that spread throughout the hall like wildfire, her gaze drifting over Hermione, Harry, Ron and the rest of the Gryffindors as they sent her silent encouragement. "That does not, however, mean that the fault of those injured falls upon anyone but the Death Eaters and Voldemort. They committed the act; it is them to blame for those lying in the infirmary right now. _But_-" she continued, her voice turning hard. "Do _not_ allow this attack to scare you into fleeing. Just this morning, in the Daily Prophet, there were reports of three attacks on wizarding families by Death Eaters, and a further five suspected attacks that are yet to be confirmed. You are, by all means, safest here, in Hogwarts. Now, eat up."

Sarah ignored the stares she got as she walked back towards the Gryffindor table, sitting with her head down next to Alanna and Hermione. She gave Amelia a brave grin and served herself some steak, mashed potato and steamed vegetables, topping it all off with gravy. She was about to take a bite of her potatoes when spidery writing appeared in the side of the mound facing her. _Our associates would like a word after dinner._ Sarah looked up to see Dumbledore watching her. She gave a miniscule nod and scraped off the message, digging into her food zealously.

Everyone watched her for a moment, eating her food like she hadn't eaten in days, and with a grimace Alanna pushed her plate aside. "Suddenly I'm not hungry any more…"

Sarah spared a grin in her direction before continuing eating. After a few minutes of stuffing her face she sat back with a yawn. Meeting everyone's stares she scowled. "What? I overused my magic, _and_ I missed lunch. I was hungry!"

Alanna muttered a reply that Sarah didn't quite catch. "What was that?"

The red head grimaced. "I said that now no one _else_ is hungry. Thankyou oh so much."

Sarah shrugged and asked, "So are you finished then?" At the red head's nod she turned and caught eye with Dumbledore. "Good. I need to talk to you for a minute. See the rest of you at the Common Room." She stood and led the other knight outside, into the corridor. Minutes later they were joined by Mad Eye Moody, Tonks, Kingsley and Dumbledore.

Silently they made their way to the headmaster's office. When they were all inside the other members of the Order turned expectantly to Sarah. She frowned in confusion. "What?"

Mad Eye growled in exasperation. "Well? What did You Know Who say?"

Sarah blinked. "Oh. Well, your basic megalomaniacal rubbish… join my side and you can be powerful… together we can rule the world and bring the wizards to their rightful place, a top the muggle scum etcetera etcetera. Not really that important."

"Not really that important?!" Mad Eye began, but Dumbledore held up a hand.

"My dear, can you remember exactly what he said?"

Sarah blew out a sigh. "Um… let's see… he started off by complimenting my abilities… said that he wouldn't have tortured his Death Eaters if he had known how skilled I was, or something to that effect. Then he said he wanted me to join his cause and that together we would free the world of muggle and mudblood oppression. I told him I was a mudblood, but he didn't seem to care. He said that only a pure blood could control the Wandless Arts as I do… he didn't want me for my wand work, just my Gift. I asked whether he wouldn't kill me after I was done, and he started getting angry, saying that he would find my 'community' and one of two things was going to happen. Either they were going to be destroyed, or they could be made great, or something like that. I almost laughed at him, but then he tried to read my mind."

Everyone's eyes widened, but Sarah was quick to reassure them. "Don't worry, I asked the Great Mother for help and she repelled him. He didn't get anything."

"How can you be sure?" Moody growled.

Sarah rolled her eyes. "Because I just know, okay? Anyway, I told him everyone in my society would rather die than receive help from him, and that there was no deal. Since my society is me and Alanna, that's more or less true… Then, well this was stupid, I must say. I told him to either kill me or leave us all alone, so he tried the killing curse. That's when I raised my shield and he turned to fire another curse on you lot, so I raised a reverse shield, to keep his spell in, rather than let it out. That's when the Aurors all arrived, and when he broke out of my shield it kind of… dazed me. Thanks for the catch, by the way, Moody."

His face softened almost imperceptibly, but his words were harsh. "You should have been more careful."

Sarah smiled ruefully, but Alanna's face turned red with anger. "I'd like to see you do better against Voldemort!"

"Okay…" Tonks began, stepping between the vigilant Auror and the red headed knight. "Point is, Sarah survived the killing curse… a _second_ time, and made Voldemort angry. He also now knows how powerful she is, so chances are the next time he attacks he'll have a heap more Death Eaters and he probably won't risk attacking the school. There are too many skilled witches and wizards here to defend the school."

Sarah nodded and yawned. "Is that all? I told the others I'd meet them in the common room, and after that I really intend upon sleeping for another… oh, day or so."

Dumbledore nodded. "Have a good night's sleep, my dear, and don't be surprised if you find a party raging in the Gryffindor Common Room."

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

Sure enough, there was a party raging in the Common Room. Bottles of butterbeer were being passed around, and when Sarah entered the room a loud cheer went up. She almost turned around, but Alanna and Tonks pushed her through the door and into the Common Room proper. Sarah grimaced and accepted a bottle as it was pushed into her hand. She found a seat against the wall were she could defend herself from the first years and waited for Hermione, Ron and Harry to find their way to her. She didn't have to wait long; Ron's loud voice cut through the throng of younger students.

"Oi! Get away from her, give her some space to breath! Geez, you'd think Harry'd never saved the day from You Know Who before either!" Suddenly there were kids swarming around Harry, the forgotten hero, and Sarah found herself with room to breath, even as Ron and Hermione sat down next to her.

"How are you feeling?" The girl asked.

Sarah yawned, "Better."

"You scared the hell out of us!" Ron added. "Falling off your broom like that… What were you thinking?!"

Sarah choked on her bottle of butterbeer as Tonks swiped at Ron's head. "I didn't _plan_ to fall off my broom; I was _blown_ off when Voldemort broke my shield! Jeez… you'd think I practiced swan diving off of roofs in my spare time."

Harry, who had only just managed to get rid of the first years that were now bugging him, sat in a seat next to Hermione. "So you're alright then?"

Sarah nodded and yawned again. When she yawned for a third time, Alanna took control of the situation. "Alright, let's get back to our rooms. You need some sleep."

Sarah yawned again and allowed herself to be tugged to her feet. "Alright. See you all tomorrow. Don't stay up too late; tomorrow's a Hogsmeade visit."

"Yes mum…" Ron dragged out with a half grin. Sarah shoved him playfully as she exited the room. When she stopped at her door she didn't turn the handle, rather leaning her head against the cool wood.

"Sarah?" Alanna's voice was concerned, it came from beside her.

Sarah turned her head, still leaning against the door. "I'm fine." She pushed herself off the door with a groan and turned to Tonks. "You staying the night?"

The metamorphagus shrugged. "Do you mind? I could go home if it's easier."

Sarah shook her head. "Nah, come on in. Amelia, do you mind the floor? Tonks can take the bed…"

Amelia was shaking her head even as Tonks started shaking her head. "Not a chance, Sarah. You need the bed."

Sarah frowned. "No. I'll take the couch."

The argument moved into the lounge room, Alanna joining Tonks' side. Each of the others beat Sarah to a couch, and Tonks grinned in triumph. "Take the bed, Sarah."

"That wouldn't be very hostly of me, now would it? No." And with that she moved to sit next to Alanna, who had sat on the two seater, and swung her feet atop the other knight, allowing her eyes to flutter shut.

Alanna groaned and stood. "I'll fetch the tea, shall I?"

Sarah didn't answer; she was already asleep. That left Tonks and Amelia sitting uncomfortably in silence. "Umm…" The metamorphagus began. "So… what's your favourite band?"

Amelia frowned. "The Weird Sisters. Why?"

"I figure we should get to know each other. Favourite drink?" Tonks didn't meet her eyes; she seemed very uncomfortable.

"Ummm… Pumpkin juice." Amelia's mouth worked for a few moments before saying, "Yours?"

Tonks grinned. "Firewhiskey."

Amelia was stopped from asking another question by a slight moan from Sarah, her brow creased as she bit her lower lip. Tonks stood quickly, striding over to the prone form as Alanna reentered the room. "She having a nightmare?" Tonks nodded. "Can you help me move her to the bed?"

Another nod, and Tonks had her wand out. She murmured the incantation for the Hover Charm and Sarah rose a few feet in the air, drifting towards the door Alanna had just opened, the one leading to Sarah's bed.

Alanna pulled the covers back and Tonks let Sarah drift slowly onto the bed, even as the girl let out another soft moan. Alanna pulled the covers over the unconscious girl, stroking the hair out of her eyes as Sarah tossed and turned, fighting off an invisible assailant.

"What are they about?" Tonks asked, concerned.

Alanna shook her head. "She'll tell you if she wants to. Ask her when she wakes up." She met the metamorphagus' eyes, now a deep blue. "Do you want the bed or a couch?"

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

Tonks took the couch, and when Sarah woke up, yawning, and strode through the door to the living area she scowled at the sight. The sky was pinkish through the window; Sarah thought it must be approaching dawn. She trod quietly, careful to avoid waking Amelia, who slept on a pile of blankets near the two seater the metamorphagus was sleeping on.

With a quick and quiet spell she started the tea pot boiling; seeing the door to Alanna's room open and the red head reading quietly, she pulled down two cups and took out tea and filters for both of them. Walking to the open door she stuck her head in and said quietly, "Tea?"

Alanna started and dropped her book, swearing quietly. "Sure. How'd you sleep? You were having a few nightmares, but then I think you calmed down…"

"Yeah… I've had worse night's sleep. I'm not anywhere near as tired as yesterday, but my magic's still pretty low. Tonks took the couch?" She asked with a slight hint of reproach.

Alanna held up her hands, "Hey. I offered the bed, she wanted to stay in the living room and have a slumber party with Amelia, whatever that is…"

Sarah almost barked a laugh, before remembering that there were two potentially very tired witches in the other room. She nodded instead, explaining quietly, "It's where you get together with a bunch of friends and sleep in the same room, eat lots of junk food and watch movies. It's mostly a girl thing…"

Alanna nodded and ignored the question that sat on the tip of her tongue, and when a soft whistle started from the small kitchen Sarah rushed back to the tea pot, muttering "Finite Incantum." Before pouring two cups and passing one to Alanna. They moved quietly back to Alanna's room and had barely sat down on the bed before a loud rap at the door had Sarah leaping to her feet, rushing to open the door before Tonks and Amelia woke up.

She found Mad Eye, Dumbledore and a centaur at the door. Unwittingly, she took a step back from the centaur, fear hardening in her stomach like a cold fist of ice before she calmed down. In Tortall the only centaurs were killers or creatures that thought they could trade wild horses for human women. "What's up?" She asked, realising something serious must have happened.

The centaur spoke, his voice deep. "There has been a prediction. There will be an attack nearby, and very soon. The prediction was made in the early morning sky, where only the brightest and truest of stars are found; there is little chance of a mistake."

Sarah's eyes widened. "Do we know where?"

The centaur shook his head, and his face betrayed his disappointment. "We only know that it will not be on Hogwarts; the school figures very prominently in predictions. Apart from that, it could be anywhere."

Sarah nodded. "Thanks for the warning…"

"Malrinze." He supplied his name for her.

Sarah nodded again. "Thanks for the warning, Malrinze." She turned to Dumbledore and Mad Eye. "Where else could it be? Hogsmeade, obviously, but anywhere else?"

The older wizard was shaking his head. "Hogsmeade is the only place nearby that would appeal to Voldemort's sense of grandeur; it is the only village, and there are few houses or cottages in the immediate area." He turned to Malrinze. "Why did Firenze not inform us himself?"

Malrinze shifted from hoof to hoof, his head hung low. "Firenze is dealing with an… insurrection. The younger members of the tribe believe we are too… friendly with wizards. It is not serious, but he was detained."

Alanna grimaced. "Now there's the centaurs I'm used to." She muttered to Sarah, who elbowed her lightly.

"Hush." She said quietly before raising her voice. She ran a hand over her brow, massaging her forehead. "We should be going. I didn't think it would be an attack so soon…"

Alanna eyed her carefully. "Perhaps you should sit this one out. It might be a false alarm…" But Sarah was already shaking her head.

"Not a chance. I doubt it's just a false alar-"

"But you're still weak from yesterday-"

"But I might be needed!" Sarah's voice had risen over Alanna's, she was almost shouting. "Look. I need to be there in case innocent people are targeted again! There were fifteen people put in the infirmary yesterday; who's to say there won't be fatalities this time!"

"Yeah, yours!" Alanna's face was red; her purple eyes blazed. "You're not going. You're still tired! If you're attacked with a killing curse, you'll probably end up dead!"

"Oh for the love of- Look, remember what you said when I got out of the Chamber of the Ordeal? You said you'd never doubt me again, but what are you doing right now? The gods-"

A gasp from behind her caused Sarah to break off quickly, but the damage was done. She turned to see Amelia gaping at her, with Tonks cringing behind the young girl. Sarah groaned, which deepened to a growl when she heard what Dumbledore had to say. "My dear, Alanna is right. And it seems you have some explaining to do. Besides, if it is you that Voldemort wants, everyone will be much safer with you here, out of harm's way."

"Or he'll just kill everyone there in annoyance…" Sarah trailed off, a hint of her will power left for the argument.

Moody spoke up. "You aren't coming. I'll stun you myself if I have to. You'll be a danger in the field."

"But-" Sarah faltered.

Alanna pushed her gently back through the door. "No buts. Stay here, explain everything to Amelia. We'll be fine."

Sarah watched the door as Tonks walked through, joining the hunting party. The door was closed behind her, and Sarah was left alone with Amelia. She cleared her throat quietly. "So… just how much did you two hear?"

Amelia's mouth worked for a moment before she asked, "Why were you talking about the gods? They're just myths, aren't they?"

Sarah pinched the bridge of her nose, feeling a headache coming along nicely. "Alright. I'm going to explain everything, so let's sit down, shall we? Sorry for waking you, by the way, I understand you and Tonks had a late night."

Amelia shrugged off the apology, focusing intently on Sarah. "So you're telling me that the gods are real? Not just make believe stories to scare children into doing their chores?"

Sarah shook her head. "No, they're real enough. Truth be told, I'm not from some secret society of wandless witches and wizards. I'm from entirely another dimension- no don't look at me like that, it's true. The gods are real, and they've sent me here to help defeat Voldemort. I fully don't know how I'm going to manage it, but they want me to, so that's what I'm here to do. And Alanna? She was in charge of my training back home. I- should probably start from the beginning."

Amelia nodded seriously. "That would be a start."

"Alright, so I'm _originally_ from another version of Earth. There's no magical world there… as far as I know. I might look into that when we get through this… any way. I was brought to another dimension, to a country called Tortall, by the Great Gods. I was told by them that I had to do a mission, to train as a Knight, mage, which is like a witch, and a Shang, which is, in laymen's terms an expert martial artist- and would you _please_ stop looking at me like that, it's all the truth!" Sarah exclaimed.

Amelia was shaking her head. "It's alright, if you don't want to tell me the truth…"

"Oh for the love of…" Sarah started, standing. "Fine, you know what, just wait here." Sarah marched out through the door, and stormed down the corridor to the Gryffindor common room. When the Fat Lady granted her admission, she continued her rampage, first up to the sixth year girl's dorms, rousing Hermione and ignoring Parvati and Lavender as they complained about the hour. Next, she woke Ginny, in the fifth year girl's dorms, and then made her way back down the stairs, depositing them in the common room before stalking up the opposite stairs, gathering the boys who staggered down the stairs, yawning as they came.

She led them back to her rooms, ignoring their questions. Planting her fists on her hips, she turned to Amelia, but spoke to the others. "Guys, tell her where I'm from."

Ron frowned. "You're from a secret culture that exists separately fr-"

Sarah cut him off abruptly. "No, not that load of codswallop that Dumbledore fed the Minister to keep him from arresting me. Where am I _really_ from? She overheard me and Alanna arguing in the hallway with Dumbledore and Mad Eye, and now she doesn't believe me."

Hermione looked from Sarah to Amelia, and back again. "Geez, you really suck at keeping secrets, don't you? Yes, Amelia, it's all true. She's from another dimension, there's no secret community, and she's really here to help defeat Voldemort."

The first year jutted her chin out stubbornly, apparently thinking the joke was on her. "Really? Prove it."

"Prove- How the hell am I meant to prove it?" Sarah asked, bewildered beyond her annoyance.

"What, you all think it's funny, acting all nice and then pulling a prank on me? Are you going to laugh it up later? It's happened before, with my former house mates, you know! I'm not a fool!" Amelia was on the verge of tears.

"I- wha- prank? You think this is a prank?" Sarah gaped, gobsmacked. She turned to the others, who wore identical expressions on their faces. "Can you guys give us a minute? We'll meet you later in the common room."

They all left, shooting encouraging glances in Sarah's direction. When they were left alone, Sarah approached the hurt ten year old, wary of her reaction as she drew closer. "Amelia, what would make you think we'd want to trick you? Why would we ever want to play a prank on you?"

Amelia didn't meet her eyes. "The other students did it… they pretended to be my friend and then stole my stuff, or embarrassed me in front of the other students… You weren't joking?" The last part was whispered, and Sarah sat down on the couch, clasping her hands together as she lay back, cradling her head as she stared at the ceiling.

"Nope. Truth is, I really am from another dimension, and fact is, the Gods are real. They recruited me, had me train up, sent me on a mission that almost killed me, and then, after oh, maybe a month's rest sent me here. Good fun, eh?" Sarah said it all in a carefree voice, not revealing the bitterness she felt over the situation.

"I- I'm sorry, Sarah, for not believing you." Amelia started.

"Pfft, don't apologize to me, apologize to the others. It's them I woke up to try and convince you." Sarah grinned.

The younger girl was still curious about something, however. "Is that what… Is that what your nightmares are about?"

Sarah sat up slowly, trying to think up an answer. "Some of them. Others are from some… other events during my training. But really, that's not important." Sarah stood. "Let's get to the common room, I need to tell the others of what's going down in Hogsmeade so Harry can show me the secret passageway down into Honeydukes."


	15. Chapter 14

Chapter 14:

Sarah had told Harry, Ron, Hermione and Ginny about the possible impending attack in Hogsmeade; she had to, they wouldn't tell her about the secret passageway to the Honeydukes' cellar otherwise. She had _tried_ to persuade them not to come, but she knew they wouldn't listen, and now they found themselves standing before a sculpture of fruit, watching as Harry tickled the pear.

Sarah's jaw dropped as the pear started giggling softly, and she shook her head ruefully. The knight took point as the group made their way quietly down the corridor, the only illumination provided by their wands. She glanced back at the others with a grimace; suddenly she was very glad she had forced Amelia to stay behind. The passageway was dusty, cobwebs hung from the ceiling. Twice Sarah had to duck to keep them from attaching themselves to her hair; she heard Ron cursing about spiders somewhere behind her.

After what seemed like an eternity of walking for Sarah, there appeared a square of light in the roof of the passageway. Sarah held a finger to her lips for quiet and extinguished the light from her wand. The others all followed suit, and soon the only illumination was provided from the cracks in the trap door from the cellar. About to lift the trap door, Sarah stopped herself as she heard voices above; a shadow blocked the light from streaming through the cracks, and a gruff man was yelling. "Now, why did you have to insult me? Huh? I woulda left ya alone; the Dark Lord don't want no shopkeeps for hostages, he wasn't gonna hurt you. But now I gotta teach you a lesson." There was a sound as flesh hit flesh, and a thump as something fell to the floor.

"P-please… I didn't mean-" A trembling voice was cut off by the first voice, who Sarah was now sure was a Death Eater.

"Of course you meant it, you mudblood whore! Stop ya whining!" This time the sound accompanying the yell was a cry of pain, and Sarah stopped listening. She raised the trap door slightly and noticed two booted feet standing in front of the door, not a foot away and facing towards the opposite wall.

"Oi!" She whispered to Harry and Ron. "Give me a boost!" They formed cradles with their hands and Sarah stepped one foot into each. She placed one hand on the trap door, ready to force it upward, and the other hand gripped her wand tightly. Sarah gave the boys a nod.

She burst through the opening in the floor, yelling "Expelliarmus!" before the Death Eater could respond. His wand flew to Sarah's outstretched hand, even as she yelled, "Get against the wall, now!"

"Y-you! It's you, the one the Dark Lord wants!" He exclaimed as she pressed him roughly against the wall, face first.

"Yeah, I am. Hermione, tie this guy up, would you?" She said to the girl as she made her way through the trap door. When she had, Sarah turned to the shopkeeper. "Are you alright? Did he hurt you?"

The brown haired, mousy woman shook her head. "N-not really… the Cruciatus w-wore off… who are you?"

Sarah grimaced. "Do you read the Daily Prophet?" The woman shook her head. "Good. Don't. Guys, come on, I'll bet there are more outside." They all crept quietly up the stairs and through the door to the shop proper, crouching low so as to not be seen by anyone outside. One by one they made their way to the windows of the store, ignoring the sweets that surrounded them. When they peered carefully over the window sill, the sight shocked them. There was Tonks and Moody battling three Death Eaters at the far end of the street, back to back. Dumbledore, McGonagall and two shopkeepers Sarah recognized from her last trip to Hogsmeade were doing battle against a further four Death Eaters at the other end. And there in the centre of the street, not twenty meters away, was Alanna the Lioness, King's Champion writhing in pain on the ground, as Voldemort tortured her.

"_Crucio_. Tell me what I want to know." His voice was soft, almost gentle. Alanna's incoherent screams drowned out his question.

Sarah's blood ran cold. Her grip tightened on her wand; she pushed open the door to Honeydukes, ignoring the jingle of the bell as she strode onto to street. "Expelliarmus!" She screamed at Voldemort, knocking his wand upwards in his grip, but not quite out of his hands. "Leave her alone!"

His crimson red eyes met hers as he raised his wand towards her. "You had your chance, mudblood." Sarah wished fervently that the Aurors hadn't gone home the previous evening, leaving only Mad Eye to safeguard the school against further attacks.

Dumbledore's group must have finished off their opposition, because the next thing Sarah knew Dumbledore was rushing to their aid, as McGonagall and the other shopkeepers made their way to help Tonks and Moody. The old man's voice was grave as he said, "You should never have attacked, Tom."

Sarah used the Dark Lord's distraction to drop to one knee beside Alanna, muttering, "You're such a hypocritical idiot. You were drained yesterday, what made you think you could take on Voldemort?"

Alanna tried to sit up, groaning an answer that sounded like, "It's not the stupidest thing I've ever done." Sarah just growled in response and looped Alanna's arm over her shoulder, levying her into a standing position and helping her hobble into Honeydukes. "Ginny!"

The red head, who had been standing outside at the time, watching as Dumbledore and Voldemort stared each other down, as though willing the other to attack, rushed to Sarah at her call. "Keep Alanna and the shopkeeper safe."

The younger girl gaped. "What! But what about you, and Ron and Harry-"

"No buts. Stay here or I'll body bind you. What do you think will happen to Alanna and the shopkeeper if a Death Eater gets past us? They need you here to defend them." Sarah stared Ginny down, until finally the girl nodded churlishly. That done, she made her way back outside, just in time to see Voldemort strike at Dumbledore.

A fiery snake lunged at the headmaster, but it soon turned into a cloud of steam as Dumbledore drenched it in water. The older wizard returned the attack with a swarm of what looked like sewing needles, which shattered on Voldemort's shield.

Sarah, who was about to leap into the fray, barely had time to throw up her own shield spell when she noticed two Death Eaters trying to sneak up on them. Yelling to the others, she said, "We have to get them off our back! Harry and I need to go after Voldemort!"

Hermione, inbetween trading spells with the Death Eaters, replied, "Go then! Ron and I will take care of these two!"

Sarah nodded, firing one last curse in the direction of the Death Eaters, before turning back around. "How do you want to do this? You're the one who has to finish him."

"How did you-" Harry was cut off by a cry behind them; they glanced back to see one Death Eater face down on the road, and Hermione and Ron gaining steady ground on the other.

Sarah answered his unfinished question. "Dumbledore told me. Don't tell me you never thought to think up a strategy!" Sarah fired a stupefy curse at the dark wizard before ducking into a roll to avoid the green jet of a killing curse.

Harry, who was also firing curses and dodging hexes, replied hotly, "Well what would you do, then?"

"Good point! I- Harry, drench me in cold water, quick!" Sarah's mind flashed on a piece of information Alanna had once told her, a piece of information that had served her well before.

"What?" The request distracted Harry, Sarah had to pull him down as a blue burst jetted inches above his head.

"Just do it!" She yelled, frustrated.

"Aguamenti!" A jet of cold water, originating from Harry's wand, drenched Sarah thoroughly.

By way of explanation she said, "It magnifies the Gift, getting really cold. Salt water would have been better, but beggars can't be choosers."

About to implement her plan, Sarah swore as two more Death Eaters appeared behind Dumbledore, aiming their wands at his back. "Protego!" She screamed, and their curses rebounded harmlessly. The old man turned to deal with the new threat, leaving Sarah and Harry to fight Voldemort alone.

Sarah used her now replenished Gift to create a miniature shield around Voldemort's wand hand, leaving him incapable of using any spells against them as long as the shield remained. He immediately began trying to break the spell, and Sarah felt her strength draining slowly but surely. "Finish it!" She yelled at Harry. The dark haired, green eyed boy levelled his wand at Voldemort, but uncertainty flickered over his face.

The momentary distraction was all it took; a Death Eater that neither of them saw disarmed Harry with the swish of a wand; the boy turned to face the masked enemy. "No, Harry! You deal with Voldemort, I'll deal with the other twat!" She fired a stunning curse at the Death Eater, her left hand still held against Voldemort, who was trying to free himself. With her concentration split, Sarah was finding it difficult to keep Voldemort contained.

The Death Eater tried a killing curse, and Sarah threw up a shield, feeling her magic draining further as it rebounded. She took a brief respite from her battle, pointing her wand in the approximate direction of the headmaster's office. "_Accio_ _Sorting Hat_!"  
The hat came soaring to land at her feet; she kicked it to Harry. "Harry, the sword! Call the sword of Godric Gryffindor from the Sorting Hat and _finish him!_"

Her magic was draining quickly, and soon something had to give. She released the shield protecting her from the Death Eater, keeping her concentration on the shield around Voldemort's wand hand. The dark wizard was taunting Harry slowly. "You don't have it in you to kill a man, do you Harry? Not in battle, not in cold blood." The hat sat uselessly in Harry's hand, limp, without a hint of silver to indicate the sword had appeared.

Sarah glanced back to her opponent just in time to see a flash of blue, which hit her full in the chest. She fell to the ground, writhing in pain as she absently wondered how others survived the curse. Her concentration on the shield wavered, and when the Death Eater renewed his attack and hot, white pain exploded all over her body, the shield began to crumble. She screamed, long and drawn out, as the agony took over. She didn't notice Harry, spurred by her suffering, drawing the sword of Godric Gryffindor from the sorting hat, ducking below Voldemort's guard as the Dark Lord broke free of Sarah's shield and brought his wand around to face the boy.

The call of Avada Kedavra was halted at the start as the sword slid into the dark wizard, Harry's knuckles white on the hilt as he drove it through the man's heart; the blade protruded from Voldemort's back. His blood was as red as any of his victims', and his pale face turned slack as he gaped at the silver hilt jutting from his chest.

The Death Eater attacking Sarah lost concentration as his master tumbled to the ground, his eyes staring at the sky in death. Sarah, shaking from the effects of the Cruciatus curse, scrambled to her feet and quickly disposed of the masked menace. Harry backed away slowly, staring at the body of his greatest enemy, as Sarah staggered lightly over to him. "Are you alright?" She asked quietly.

He nodded slightly. "Yeah, I am…"

Hermione and Ron joined them, skirting a wide perimeter around the body lying in the middle of the Hogsmeade street, the other girl making her way to Sarah's side, supporting the knight as she stood unsteadily. The shopkeepers made their way out of their stores, those that hadn't joined Dumbledore and McGonagall in fighting. Alanna walked slowly towards the group, supported by the woman from Honeydukes on one side. Tonks, Mad Eye and McGonagall made their way towards them from the other end of the street, slowly as though dazed by the circumstances. Dumbledore, having finished off his opponents, examined the body carefully. "He is dead." He finally proclaimed, and a collective cheer went up through the crowd.

Sarah sighed and withdrew from Hermione's grasp, staggering lightly to the steps in front of Honeydukes, where she was joined by Alanna, and sat heavily. She leant against the railing, her eyes closed as she sighed. Alanna nudged her. "Stop complaining. At least you had a semblance of resistance to the Cruciatus curse." She finished her sentence with a light cough and a grimace, clutching her ribs.

"You all right?" Sarah asked, gazing over with half lidded eyes.

Alanna nodded with a grimace. "Yeah… he alternated between crucios and kicking me in the ribs. Didn't know he favoured physical violence…"

Sarah winced in sympathy and closed her eyes briefly, looking for a momentary respite, but unable to stop herself from falling deeply into unconsciousness.

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

Sarah awoke to the smell of fresh linen and the touch of warm sunlight. She opened her eyes and glanced around, noticing she was, once again, in the infirmary. She sat up quickly, and cradled her head as it pounded in anger at the sudden movement. Groaning, she cursed under her breath. A voice beside her tsked. "Now I know _I _didn't teach you all those."

She cracked her eyelids and grinned at Alanna. "Nah, Sarge and Buri did. Learnt a couple of K'mir curses from her too. What happened?"

The red head passed her a glass of water. "You fainted." Sarah spluttered on her gulp, choking as Alanna thumped her on the back sympathetically. "Don't worry, I did too. We were both pretty drained; I saw you were tapping into your life force in those last few moments holding the shield."

Sarah frowned. "Oops. That'll teach me… How are the ribs? All healed? How long have you been up? And how long have I been out?"

Alanna sat in the seat beside her bed. "Well. The ribs are healed, I've been up for about three hours and you've been out for three days."

Sarah nodded as her stomach growled. "How'd you get past Pomfrey? There's no way she let you out of bed after only three hours."

Alanna smirked. "I have my ways. Harry, Hermione and Ron have more or less lived in the infirmary since we were brought back up here, I heard. Madam Pomfrey finally banned them this morning. You must be hungry. It's past lunch time, but I'm sure the house elves can scrounge something up for you."

Sarah licked her lips even as her stomach growled again. She swung her legs over the side of the bed, standing a little too quickly. "Whoa… head spin… I might take lunch in bed…" Alanna had stood to steady her, now she was trying to sit her back down on the bed. "No, no, not this one. The one in our quarters. I am _so_ sick of this place. Let's get out of here before Pomfrey sees I'm up."

Together they snuck quietly through the door, and were halfway down the hall before the bell rang twice; two o'clock, and classes were out. "Crap." Sarah muttered softly as students started pouring out of the class rooms. Harry, Ron and Hermione appeared at the end of the corridor, heads bent together as they walked, whispering to each other.

The first student to notice her was a first year in Ravenclaw. When he pointed and shouted Harry, Hermione and Ron looked up from their hushed conversation, even as students started swarming around her, asking her questions and talking at her. Harry rushed forward, a bundle of what looked like dark grey silk in his hands. "Here." He muttered. "Put this on and get to the Common Room. We'll meet you there. Password's the Weird Sisters."

Sarah didn't ask questions, assuming this was the famous invisibility cloak. She whipped it over her shoulders and pulled the hood up, grinning at the cries of, "Where's she gone?"

As she went past she patted Ron and Hermione on the back, whispering, "Common Room." In their ears before trotting down the corridor, keeping close to the wall for support. Twice, she had to stop to lean against the cool stone, shaking her head as the dizzy spells passed.

When she reached the Common Room she glanced around surreptitiously before removing the hood. "Oh, my dear, you scared me!" The Fat Lady exclaimed. Sarah ignored her. "The Weird Sisters."

"You know, every time someone walks through the portal these days, they're talking about how you helped Harry Potter kill You Know Who. Where have you been these past few days?"

"Under a rock." Sarah muttered. "The Weird Sisters."

"How did you do it-" The Fat Lady's question was cut off by Sarah's impatient growl.

"Would you please just let me in?" Sarah demanded crossly.

"Hmpf. Well if you're going to have that attitude…" The portal swung open, and Sarah strode inside. Thankfully, the room was deserted, and when Alanna, Harry, Ron and Hermione arrived they found Sarah sitting in a comfortable arm chair, her feet propped on a coffee table.

"What did you say to the Fat Lady? She seemed really upset…" Hermione asked, concerned.

"She was being annoying." Sarah waved the question off with the flick of a hand. "Tell me one of you brought food."

A _pop_ signalled the apparition of a house elf; he produced a plate of hot chicken, vegetables and mashed potatoes. Sarah licked her lips. "Dobby brought this for you. Harry Potter told Dobby you wanted lunch. Dobby is honoured to serve the great witch who brought about the Dark Lord's demise." The elf bowed low as Sarah blinked.

"Uh… Thankyou Dobby, that was very kind. I'm sure it tastes terrific." She spared a glance at Alanna, who was grinning in amusement.

"The lady is too kind." Dobby's whining voice rose in pitch at her compliment. Sarah took the plate from him and fell upon her food, ravenous after her three and a half days of no food. A pop signalled Dobby's departure, Sarah didn't notice. Sarah finished her food in record time, ignoring the disgusted look the others gave her as she discarded her plate. "Ah… that was really good. Of course, it could have tasted like crap and I still would have eaten it- oh stop looking at me like that, you've all already eaten!" She snapped.

"You… _inhaled_ your food." Ron grinned as only a boy could.

Sarah shrugged. "Ahuh. Can you guys go and free Neville and Fernando from whatever classes they have? I figure I should probably tell them all the full truth before Mithros shows up with a one way ticket out of here…" She trailed off as what she had said sunk in.

"Y-you mean… you'll be leaving soon?" Hermione asked, sadness flashing across her face.

Sarah sighed. "Probably. Depends on when Mithros arrives. Can you bring Amelia along too? And Tonks, Dumbledore and McGonagall if their free? I figure I should probably get the goodbyes out of the way in case he rocks up and sweeps us away…"

Alanna nodded seriously. "That would probably be a good idea. Hagrid too. I'll fetch him, you rest here."

Sarah nodded and sat back, letting her eyes fall closed as she waited for everyone to return.

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

Alanna was laughing as she shook Sarah awake. "Wha- Huh?" Sarah sat up and rubbed sleep from her eyes. "Did I fall asleep? Damn it all… Hello everyone!" She grinned at the new arrivals; Fernando, Amelia and Neville. "Or… not everyone…"

"Professor McGonagall and Hagrid had class. Professor Dumbledore said he'd rather speak to you in private. Tonks was called back to the Ministry." Hermione explained.

Sarah nodded in understanding. "Alright then… So. I suppose I need to give you both an explanation. I am getting so sick of-"

"No." Fernando was uncharacteristically quiet. "Dumbledore explained everything to the school while you slept. He told us all about how you're from another dimension… how the gods, which are actually real, sent you here to help us. Why didn't you tell us?"

Sarah winced. "Look, guys, I wanted to, I just couldn't-"

The younger boy cut her off. "Then why did you tell Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Amelia…"

"I didn't tell them, they found out, one way or another. Don't be upset… no one was supposed to know." Sarah's voice filled with pleading.

Neville spoke up, his voice trembling. "It's alright, Sarah. We aren't upset with you." He elbowed Fernando in the ribs when the younger boy started protesting.

Sarah cleared her throat uneasily. "So… just what did Dumbledore say?"

Hermione smiled wickedly. "All about you. Mage-"

"He explained about the Shang-" Ron continued.

"Your knightly-ness-" Harry added with a grin.

Ginny finished it off. "And, of course, the whole Messenger for the Gods part."

Sarah groaned tiredly. "Great…" Neville was watching her with awe. "Um… did he say anything about Alanna? She has a lot of fancy names too…"

"Lioness, King's Champion, Lady Alanna of Trebond, Olau and Pirate's Swoop, former shaman of the Bazhir Bloody Hawk tribe…" Sarah grinned as Hermione listed them off, one by one, and Alanna's face grew redder and redder.

They were saved from saying anything further by a loud crack; the Great Mother Goddess now stood in the Gryffindor Common Room. Sarah sighed. "Careful; you'll give those four a heart attack." Sarah gestured to Hermione, Fernando, Amelia and Neville, who were staring, gobsmacked. "So… is this it then?"

The Goddess nodded. "Yes, my daughters. It is time to return to Tortall."

Sarah cleared her throat. "Will, uh… will we be able to return? Do we have the same option as I did when I left Tortall?"

The Goddess looked thoughtful. "If you turn the charm Mithros gave you with your Gift, and think of here, you will be able to return. As our Messenger you are free to travel between the dimensions you visit. You will be able to bring anyone you wish, but they will not be able to travel between the dimensions without you."

Sarah grinned. "Sounds fair. Do we have to leave now?" The Great Mother nodded. Sarah turned to the others. "Well… looks like this is it guys. I'll come back and visit after I've got my fief sorted out, I promise. Hermione…" She trailed off as the other girl wiped tears from her eyes.

"I know, I know…" Hermione trailed off, a sad look passing over her face. Sarah hugged her tightly.

"I _promise_ I'll visit. Now stop crying!" She laughed.

Hermione sighed wetly. "I'm sorry… just make sure you do!"

The scene repeated itself with each of her friends until she came to Harry. "Be safe, Harry."

He shook her hand firmly before drawing her into a hug. "I will, thanks to you."

Sarah shook her head. "Not really… I just helped a little."

They withdrew to arms' length, staring at each other. "Harry… Good luck. With life."

He nodded and gave her a brief grin. Alanna cleared her throat and said in a stage whisper; "Take it from one Gods' touched to another, it's best not to keep them waiting…"

Sarah smiled impishly at the Great Mother Goddess. "Sorry. You know, everytime you lot send me to a new place, I make new friends. It just takes a little while to say goodbye to them all." She turned back to the assembled Hogwarts students. "Say goodbye to everyone else for me, okay? I've got to get this one home to her family." She jerked a thumb at Alanna before walking back to the other knight, standing beside her.

The Great Mother Goddess' voice was soft as she asked, "Are you ready, my daughters?"

Sarah nodded bravely, before grinning wickedly. "Careful, Alanna, this is just like-"

The world spun around them.

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

"- travelling on a boat." Sarah finished as she staggered, barely keeping her feet. She walked over to the King's Champion, who was clutching her stomach and moaning on her hands and knees. The palace appointed clerk stood suddenly, lurching from his seat in the garden they had been delivered to.

"Y-your back!"

A/n. Almost there!!!


	16. Chapter 15

Chapter 15:

Sarah helped Alanna into a standing position before scowling at the clerk. "Stop that, stand up straight." He obeyed, straightening from his deep bow with a look of confusion on his face.

The look soon passed and a hesitant look of excitement crossed his bland features. "Are you here to stay?" At Sarah's nod his grin deepened. "Well, good! That is to say- I didn't mean… Since Mithros last visited I have been focusing on some improvements to your fief; I had thought to bring it up to standard before you returned."

The look on his face reminded Sarah of a puppy seeking a reward after rolling over. She sighed. "What kind of improvements?" Unspoken agreement passed between the three; they started walking towards the tower entrance.

"Well, I've put the village men to work digging mine shafts to access the veins of malachite so we may export it, and I've also put some men to clearing fields for farming, so we may grow our own food." He boasted proudly.

Sarah narrowed her eyes. "What do you mean, 'put the village men to work'?"

He seemed to sense her mood as he replied hastily, "My Lady, they are being paid."

"Sarah." Her eyes narrowed further. "How much, exactly?"

"Three coppers a day." He continued walking even as Sarah and Alanna halted suddenly.

"What?!" Sarah spun him around by the shoulder. "Only three coppers? That is no where _near_ enough pay for digging mine shafts! What kind of safety precautions are being taken?"

He looked nervous for the first time and gulped at her sudden anger. "S-safety precautions, my lady?"

Sarah growled as she pushed him against the wall, _hard_. She hissed in a dangerously low voice, "You are dismissed, clerk."

Without waiting for a response she turned and strode back through the corridors and down the steps to the main entrance to the tower. She walked purposefully toward the stables, where Topaz and Darkmoon were happy to see them. Sarah saddled the honey gold mare after palming a few apples to the horse and muttered, "At least you seem well looked after."

"M'lady, the Wildmage visited 'is Lordship when you left." A gruff voice said behind her. She turned to see the stable hand she had met nearly ten months ago leaning against the stable door. "She said if 'e ever 'urt the 'orses or didn't treat 'em right, she'd be back wiv an army of animals."

Sarah grinned as she finished saddling the horse and led her past the stable hand, out into the sunlight. When they were outside she mounted the mare; she was soon joined by Alanna on her dark war horse. They trotted down the path to the village, where she sought out a familiar face. She noticed Abigail, the mother of the precocious young child from her first visit to the fief, and dismounted.

"Hello again." She greeted the woman, who sunk into a deep curtsey. "Now stop that, remember, I don't like curtseys. Can you tell me where the mines are?"

"My lady," Abigail began.

"Sarah." She corrected her absently.

"S-Sarah… the mines are to the east, about half an hour's walk… or ten minutes on horse back." The woman seemed unsure how to address a noble if not by rank.

Sarah grinned, "Thanks."

She remounted Topaz and rode to the east, letting the smile fade from her face as she got further and further from the little village. She glanced sidelong at Alanna, who was following at a trot. "Alanna… I'm sorry."

The red head frowned. "What for?"

"You should be racing home to your family, not running around after me." Sarah explained.

"Piffle. Another half a day won't make a difference." Sarah could see the knight's tension even as she answered.

"Thankyou." She replied quietly, and they picked up the pace, and before they knew it they were approaching a large hole in the ground, with a mountain of dirt and stone beside it.

Sarah dismounted and strode to stand over the hole. She cupped her hands around her mouth and yelled, "Oi! Everyone out now, I need a word!"

Slowly, one by one, sooty and dirty men trickled out of the hole, confused looks on their faces. A rather tall man who seemed to be the leader approached her, squinting in the harsh day light. "Wha's all this about then? Who're you to call us offa work?"

Sarah shot an amused look at Alanna before replying. "Well, my name's Sarah and I'm the one who runs things around here…" There were whispers among the men as they started to bow. "No, no. Don't bow to me. Anyway, from this moment onwards the mines are closed. My clerk had no idea what he was doing, ordering you to begin construction without proper training or safety precautions, and he has been dismissed. Go home to your families, go back to whatever you were doing before you were commissioned to dig this shaft."

The leader frowned. "But, yer ladyship-"

"Sarah." She interjected firmly.

"Yer ladyship," He ignored her, "We was gettin paid three coppers a day fer our work ere."

Sarah winced. In her rush to stop the mining process she hadn't stopped to think about what would become of the villager's income. "Alright, how about this, I need to go to Corus to speak with his Majesty. I should be back by midday tomorrow, no later. Until then, _no one_ is to enter the mine. I'll need some volunteers to guard the mine until I get back, to make sure no kids get lost or anything, and I'll pay you two coppers an hour. Is that fair? When I get back we can start this mine again, but properly, with buttresses and other such… mining stuff." Sarah trailed off as her ineptitude with mining lingo sank in. "Alright, who's going to volunteer?"

A handful of men stepped forward and Sarah nodded, reaching for her belt purse. When her fingers closed around air she swore, startling the men into grinning. She ignored them, groping in her pocket for her wand before pointing it back at the tower and saying, "_Accio__ belt purse!"_

_I hope Daine and Numair didn't take it with them when they left for Corus…_ She had barely finished the thought when the purse came whizzing into her open hand; Sarah grinned.

"Alright, now stop gaping." She scolded the men as they stared. "I'll pay you upfront, a silver each. Split into shifts, organize it however you want, but the mine has to be guarded at all times and none of you are to work more than four hours, understood?" A smattering of nods met her question, and Sarah blew out a sigh. "Okay, now that that's out of the way, Lady Alanna and I will be off. See you all in a day or so."

The two women trotted back to the village, buying a couple of water skins and some rolls stuffed with fruit before setting off in the direction of Corus at a gallop.

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

They didn't stop until they arrived at the palace, an hour after dark. When they arrived at the gate the guard barely looked at them before grunting, "Palace is closed for the night. Come back in the mornin'."

Sarah cleared her throat quietly. "I believe the King would rather see his Champion now, don't you, Guardsman?"

The man started and looked at them properly. When he caught a glimpse of Alanna's purple eyes he turned and yelled, "Ho the barracks! The Lioness returns!" He faced them once again, bowing deeply. "Forgive me, Lady Knights. I meant no disrespect…"

Sarah grinned and shook her head. "None taken. Can we go in, or…?"

He froze with embarrassment before hastily pulling the gate open, bowing once again. As they rode past him Sarah saw the doors to the palace swing open; they created a rectangular patch of light that was marred only by a lone shadow, standing stock still. Alanna saw this as well and dismounted hurriedly; the figure rushed towards them.

As they grew closer Sarah saw who it was, and grinned as Baron George Cooper of Pirate's Swoop swept his wife into a bonecrushing hug, before kissing her deeply. There was a chorus of catcalls from the ramparts as the guardsmen watched, and Sarah joined in, until George turned on her. His eyes glinted dangerously. "Next time you've got a mission to go on, lass, I'd appreciate it if you'd keep my wife out of it."

Sarah dismounted and held up her hands placatingly. "I tried to get Mithros to leave her out of it; he'd have nothing of it. I'm sorry…"

His eyes softened and he swept her into a tight hug as well, whispering, "I know the Gods have their own way of doing things, lass. You'd've done your best."

Sarah nodded as they released, but she was saved replying by several calls from the open doors to the palace. "Alanna!"

"Alanna? Sarah? They're back!" That was unmistakably Daine's voice.

Two figures broke off from the group and ran towards the pair; soon they were dwarfed by Numair as he swept them both off their feet, and Daine as she nearly bowled Sarah over. Sarah laughed, "Hello!" Turning to Alanna she said impishly, "You'd almost think we'd been gone ten months or so…"

"Ten months, three days and fourteen hours." George replied. The other two figures from the open door had started striding quickly towards them, and soon Sarah could make out Thayet and Jon, in all their royal finery as they made their way as quickly as was acceptable towards them.

When they were standing before the joyous group Thayet abandoned all formality and launched herself at Alanna while Jon turned to Sarah. "So, the Gods sent you on another mission, and this time loaned you the use of our Lioness?"

Sarah nodded seriously. "I tried to convince them not to, but-"

"Nonsense." His blue eyes sparkled as he said, "You can't convince a god to do anything that doesn't suit their purposes. So, what was it this time?"

Sarah shook her head ruefully. "You'll hardly believe it… I'm dreading telling Numair about it, I fear I'll have to show him at some stage… But watch." She drew her wand and pointed it towards the stable. "_Accio_ grooming brush!" The brush flew towards her, and she caught it easily. "I learnt a lot while I was there. Before I explain, however, can we move this little gathering inside? It's kind of chilly, and Alanna and I need something proper to eat…" She trailed off as a realization hit her. She turned to Daine and Numair. "Where is it?"

They blinked. "Where's what?"

"The baby! Where's the baby?!" She cried, excited.

Daine smiled, an odd light entering her eyes. "Sarralyn is three months old… Onua offered to take her for the night so Numair and I could have some time to ourselves."

Sarah grinned and hugged the Wildmage again. "I'm going to call her Lyn, to save any confusion, alright?" Daine nodded, and Sarah released her. She held out a hand to Numair. "Congratulations." She grinned as he pumped her hand firmly, and they set out toward the palace, stopping only to palm Topaz and Darkmoon off to Stefan, the stable hand.

Thayet asked her where they had been; Sarah just shook her head. "Later, Thayet. It is a _long_ story."

The queen asked another question, Sarah didn't hear as she heard Alanna speaking quietly to George. "Is Thom at the University, or is he back at Pirate's Swoop?"

"At Pirate's Swoop, lass. I'll send word for him in the morning." George answered, his hand gripping hers tightly.

"And Alan?"

"Squiring with Sir Nealan of Queenscove, out near the Tyran border, last I heard. Shall I send word to him, also?"

"No…" Alanna seemed saddened by her youngest son's absence. "What about Aly? Is she still-"

George cut her off softly. "Yes lass, she says she's found her place there."

Sarah saw Alanna nod as she turned back to Thayet. "Hmm? I'm sorry, I wasn't listening."

"I asked where you got that magical stick from." The queen seemed amused.

Sarah laughed and turned to Alanna, who was now striding next to the king. "She called my wand a 'magical stick'!"

Alanna chuckled, shaking her head. "You'll have to take them all to Hogwarts at some stage. It'll be too hard to explain it _all_ otherwise."

Sarah shrugged. "Maybe I will, maybe I'll just hang the possibility over Numair's head so he doesn't bother me about it…"

"Hey!" The lanky mage protested. "Why would I bother you?"

Sarah coughed lightly into her hand. "No reason…"

They had made their way to the king's private study; Daine and Numair left them to gather Sarge and Buri from the rider's barracks. The king sent a messenger to fetch Raoul, Kel and Wildcat from their rooms; they had slept through the announcement of their return.

While they waited the king sent another messenger to fetch refreshments. Sarah was sipping a lemonade when Wildcat swept her off her feet. "So the gods aren't through with you yet?" The Shang whispered in her ear as she crushed a few ribs in greeting.

"Nope." Sarah whispered back, and she felt the pressure ease as Wildcat held her at arm's length.

"Well, in the time you have until you're swept off on another mission I expect you at the training field in the morning, at dawn. Your young friend Riley has been trying to get up in time, but he's always ten minutes late. He _has_ gotten a lot stronger and faster with all the laps he's been running." Wildcat grinned impishly.

Sarah shook her head. "Tomorrow morning, then. But I have work to do at Greenstone for a while… I'll be leaving tomorrow after our training, I have to get the exports sorted."

Alanna, who was being greeted in much the same manner as Sarah had by Sarge and Buri, looked over. "Did I hear something about early morning training? Absolutely not; Sarah needs her rest. She only woke up some eight hours ago…"

Jon frowned. "Woke up from what?"

"She was unconscious for three days after tapping into her life force the day after nearly draining herself and falling about a hundred feet before being caught- _barely_." Alanna tossed the explanation about in a carefree manner. "Oh, and don't get me _started_ on the other trouble she got herself into…"

Sarah crossed her arms against her chest. "Me? And what about you? At least _I_ didn't go racing off to fight the strongest dark wizard in the entire _dimension_ after draining myself the day before."

"You were going to." Was the retort.

Thayet was giggling, but before anyone could ask for a proper explanation the was a rap at the door; Sarah heard the bawling of an infant from the other side. Onua invited herself in, cradling a small bundle in one arm. "Sarah, Alanna, welcome back!" She hefted the bundle as Daine stepped forward to relieve her of the burden. "I was going to greet you tomorrow, but Sarralyn woke up and just wouldn't go back to sleep, I figured she wanted her mama."

"Aw, come here baby." Sarah was shocked to here baby-talk coming from Daine's mouth. Numair's mouth tugged into a grin as Daine nursed the child.

After the reunions had been made, Jon had forced Sarah to her quarters to sleep. He would hear nothing of her objections, instead focusing on what Alanna had told them of the last few days. As Sarah lay on the hard pallet she felt her body relaxing deeply, and realised how truly tired she was.

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

"I haven't had to throw you out of bed since your first week here!" Wildcat crowed as she yanked the blanket off of Sarah, who clawed for it drowsily.

"Come on, 'Cat. I'm tired… you heard what Alanna said…" Sarah drawled as she let her eyes slide closed once again.

"Alanna's always coddling you. If you hadn't used you Gift, instead using what you learnt as a Shang, you wouldn't be so tired." Wildcat said, practically.

Sarah sat up and rubbed her eyes. "It wasn't quite that simple, Wildcat. If I hadn't used my Gift I would be dead several times over by now."

"Hmpf. You're just making excuses for relying on your magic." The Shang insisted.

Sarah shook her head and yawned, flopping backwards onto the pallet. "Another few minutes… I really need the rest." She let her eyes droop closed, and she felt a weight on her bed as the warrior perched on the pallet.

"Alright, young Shang. I suppose you deserve a morning's rest. I'll ride with you to Greenstone, shall I, and hound you there?"

Sarah nodded although her eyes remained closed. "Alright. Just leave me alone right now, I plan to wake at the normal hour. I have a breakfast meeting with Jonathon, and then we'll head off, alright?"

"Don't give an old bag much time to prepare, do you?" Sarah could hear Wildcat's smile even if she couldn't see it.

"Come later, I don't care. Just leave me alone."

Wildcat's chuckle chased her into sleep.

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

Sarah rapped on the door to the king's study, but she missed the reply as an angry whistle floated down the hall, and she heard a baby's giggle, chased by the sound of claws ticking on the stone floor. She threw a glance down the hall; there, rounding the corners on all fours at record speed, was Sarralyn Salmalin, followed by a red scaled dragon about two feet long.

Sarah laughed. "Having a bit of trouble there, Kit?" She bent to scoop up the troublesome child and bounced her against a hip. The tiny girl took one look at her and burst into tears. "Oh, no, no, no… come on now, don't cry!"

Sarah looked to the tiny dragon, as though asking for help, but Daine came racing around the corner, panting. "Sarralyn! Come here, shush…" The child calmed down under her mother's ministrations, and a head poked out from the king's study.

"Sarah? Oh, Sarralyn got away from you again?" Jon was amused.

"Again?" The older Sarah was surprised. "She's a handful, then? Can she shape change?"

Daine gave her a look that said, 'Don't talk about it.' Before answering, "Only constantly for the last half of the pregnancy and until my mother told her not to."

"Your mother?" Sarah was confused. "How was she able to come down from the Divine Realms?"

"We christened her on an equinox, she's able to leave my father's land on equinoxes and solstices." Daine explained, and Sarah nodded again.

Jon chose that moment to clear his throat. "Sarah, you said you wanted to discuss your fief? The servants have brought breakfast…"

"Oh, yeah sure Jon. You'll be alright with the little bundle of joy?" Sarah teased Daine.

The Wildmage glared; the baby giggled. "I've heard that term thrown around so oftened…" She mock scowled, before smiling softly, turning down the hall with the dragon at her heels; Sarah and Jon entered his study; there was a platter of fruits and rolls laid out on his desk.

He sat around the other side and picked up a roll, eyeing her as he buttered it. "So, what can I do for you?"

Sarah cleared her throat. "As you know, I'm new to running a fief." He chuckled when heard that. "Anyway, I'm just wondering, the clerk started digging mines for the malachite and clearing fields for farming. The fief doesn't have much money, though, so he didn't follow any sort of safety precautions, and only paid the villagers three coppers a day for working. I think he had the right ideas, but I'm not sure the fief can afford to keep digging the mines; I won't continue without proper safety precautions…"

He was smiling. "You want a loan from the crown."

Sarah blinked. "I can do that? I was just looking for a recommendation to a good merchant that'll lend me the money… And someone who can lead the miners, because I have absolutely no idea what I'm doing…"

"Yes, you can ask for a loan from the crown. As for the expert… I'll have Gary look into it. How much do you think you'll need?"

Sarah bit her lip thoughtfully. "I, ah… didn't think about that, actually. Let's see, a copper an hour for the farmers… does that sound fair?" At his nod she continued. "And… at least three coppers an hour for the miners, because it's fair dangerous…" He nodded again, jotting it down on a scrap of paper. "And I didn't think to check for the quality of the tools, but I _may_ need money for that, and anything the safety precautions will cost…"

He put the quill down and looked at her seriously. "You'll have a problem with the workers."

"Huh?" She was confused; how could he know that without setting foot on the fief?

"You'll be paying half of them three times as much as the other half." He looked amused.

"Shit." His amusement skyrocketed. "Oh be quiet, _Majesty_. Any _other_ hints?"

"Keep the pay close to fair; no one expects you to manage them down to the copper, not even them, but if you keep someone on the mines for a long time, and another on the farms, then you'll have trouble. Also, make sure they have at least one day a week's rest, even if they argue. Anything else you'll need money for?" He asked.

Sarah thought it over carefully. "Apart from some crops to farm… no, I don't think so. Can you think of anything?"

"Well, how long do you think it's going to be before you can start exporting?" He asked.

"Months, at least. I didn't see the farmlands… Stop laughing. I didn't see the farmlands, but the mine are a few months from operation, at least, I think. As for the farms… even if we get them ready soon, it's almost winter so we can't start growing until spring; that'll be at least five months or so… We may even be able to export the malachite to pay for the crops…" She said thoughtfully, biting a piece of fruit in half.

Jonathon nodded. "Let's not risk it. So we're looking at about a month of preparation for the fields; they should only take about a day to reprep after winter. And the mine, about three months until you can start operations?" Sarah nodded, although she really had no idea. "Doesn't matter, if you need more money just come back to the crown. So it's about twenty gold nobles for the farm, one hundred and eighty for the mine, thirty odd for the tools, and let's say forty for the crops. That'll make it about… two hundred and seventy gold nobles."

Sarah balked. "That's a lot… how'd you get so knowledgeable, anyway?"

He smiled, and his eyes danced. "A leader knows about every aspect of life in his kingdom." She crossed her arms against her chest, an eyebrow raised. "Also, I've sat through entirely too many meetings with the farmer's board."

"That sounds more like it. Are you sure this is okay?" She asked, concerned.

He nodded before standing, the fruit finished. He ran his quill quickly against another scrap of paper, signing his name and passing it to her. "Take this to Gary, he'll draw up the forms, and then you'll need to take them to the treasurer."

She took the paper from him and folded it, sliding it into her pocket. "Thanks Jon. One last thing; in case I'm called away again… what should I do about a clerk? I don't want to pay someone for doing something when I can do the job well enough, but what'll happen if the gods turn up and don't give me any warning? I'll be leaving the fief for who knows how long, and that could be disastrous…"

He perched on the front of his desk, thoughtful. "You could train someone from the village up, and if Mithros or the Goddess require you to go on a mission, they can immediately step in and take over, but you won't have to pay them until you leave…"

Sarah nodded and stood, shaking his hand. "Good idea, Jon. Thanks for all your help. I need to be going; I told the villagers that I'd be back by midday."

He nodded. "You're taking Wildcat with you?"

Sarah shrugged. "She wants to torture me, what can I say?"

He grinned, and led her to the door. "Alanna told us some of your mission, but when you return you really must tell us the rest. It sounds fascinating…"

A/n. Alright, I'll stop it there. The next story will be… drum roll please… Star Wars, I reckon. More specifically around the time when the twins are about… five, six years old-ish (by twins I mean Jaina and Jacen Solo). I would offer a vote, but last time I did that I got very different results and I really didn't listen to anyone (sorry!) So. I hope you enjoyed the story, if you read this far, please, review, and I'll be starting the Star Wars story in the next few… let's say, weeks?


End file.
